Together We Fight
by MyCurrentObsession
Summary: That Jenova just doesn't know when to give up. Just how many times does AVALANCHE have to knock her down before she STAYS down? And this time, they're backed by the Turks. Possessing Rufus Shinra was definitely a bad idea. Many pairs.
1. Disappointing Days Nightmarish Nights

AN – I've wanted to do this for a while now. Just so everyone knows, I intend to try and update this on a schedule. I'm thinking... once a month, though I started in late this time. Just expect the next chapter sometime early September. On a different note, I didn't know how old Denzel was when I started this, so I made him two years older than Marlene. But just today, as of this posting, I watched his OVA from _On the Way to a Smile_, so I know his age now (four years older... I think). However, this (along with his story in general) doesn't work very well with my fic, so we're ignoring his OVA and going with what I already set his age at.

This starts off two years after AC (ignoring DoC), although there will be a time skip within three or four chapters… Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.

* * *

**Disappointing Days; Nightmarish Nights**

Today, he was ten. Finally, he'd grown past those first few years of childishness. He'd reached the double digits.

Denzel figured that this was significant.

That is to say, _logically_, he knew that he was really no older than he had been the day before, despite what the new number implied. But by starting the counter over, from zero to nine, and with another digit going in front, he felt that he was that much closer to becoming a man.

But just because he was becoming a man didn't mean he couldn't celebrate like a child.

There was Tifa, sitting across the table smiling lovingly at him, a cake with ten flickering candles dividing them – it was, he considered, a present all on its own. Tifa had spent hours baking it just for him.

And there was Yuffie sitting next to her, bouncing her knees in childish anticipation, anxiously waiting for him to blow out the candles – the sooner he did that, the sooner the cake was served, after all.

On Tifa's other side was Vincent, frowning over at Yuffie's barely repressed energy.

And scattered throughout the room were Barrett, Reeve (his robot, on AI today, was also hanging around somewhere), Cid and his fiancée Shera, and Nanaki – all wearing various yet happy expressions.

On his right, Cloud sat quietly; stoically taking in the scene – though a small smile was on his face.

And most importantly, on his left was Marlene. Marlene, who was clinging to his arm and bouncing on the balls of her feet, urging him to blow out the candles.

Denzel had thought he'd never be so happy ever again – losing your family and living on the streets, even if only for about two weeks, can do that to you.

He loved these people.

So, tugging his arm free from Marlene, he leaned forward, closed his eyes, and blew. _I wish that we could always be so happy and peaceful._

When he ran out of breath and stopped, Yuffie's voice rang out, "Aw, Denzel, you need to work on your aim! You missed one!"

Frowning, he cracked an eye open and saw that the teen – no, _woman_, she's twenty now – was right: Somehow, the very center candle had remained burning, despite the fact that he'd clearly gone over it, as the candles around it indicated.

He shrugged. "Whatever. It's just another opportunity to make a wish!"

This time, he focused solely on that one candle and let out a quick, strong puff of air. _I wish… I wish I could become strong and protect those I care about._

And the last burning candle went out.

* * *

He sat on the couch will a small frown on his face, watching Tifa and Marlene clean up.

"Are you sure you don't want me to help out?"

Marlene stopped wrestling a piece of wrapping paper into an already overflowing bag to send him a chiding glance. "What kind of people make the birthday boy clean up after his own party?"

Tifa straightened from where she'd been leaning to put the _one _remaining slice of cake away - there probably wouldn't even be that one left if she hadn't insisted from the moment the cake was cut that there was one piece for him to have at a later time. Before allowing them to see her face, she put on a carefully neutral expression, despite the fact that she was worried about how the fridge had become worryingly empty in the span of a single day. "That's right. This is your day, Denzel. Don't worry; we'll be done soon. Then, the three of us will watch a movie together."

The boy stewed over this tidbit for a moment before letting out a tiny grin. "…My choice?"

Marlene rolled her eyes as she dragged the bag – it was as big as she was – towards the door, knowing full well that the dumpster would be the only place large enough to fit said bag. "Of course. Who else, silly?"

That said, the young girl walked out, letting the door swing shut behind herself.

Denzel nibbled on his lower lip and ventured, "It's just too bad that Cloud couldn't stick around…"

The small smile playing across Tifa's lips dimmed a fraction. "…Yes. Yes it is. But… these things happen."

Outside of Tifa and Marlene, the person Denzel had been looking forward to seeing the most had easily been Cloud - and even then, he saw the other two on a daily basis, considering that he _lived_ with them, so their appearance at his party was a given. So when the blonde had announced he needed to leave once the boy had finished opening his presents, suffice to say, Denzel had been more than a little hurt.

_Everyone _else was willing to stick around. They'd all secured a place to stay for the night – except for Yuffie, who had weaseled her way into getting Cloud's room for the night. Clearly he wouldn't be needing it – and had only vacated the premises for the time being in the belief that they should let the makeshift family celebrate on their own for a little while longer.

This of course meant that Cid and Shera retreated to his airship to do… _questionable _things, Nanaki and Reeve went back to the latter's workplace to catch up (and possibly for Nanaki to secretly check up on the Turks and make sure they weren't up to anything), Barrett stalled going to his hotel with multiple goodbyes to his daughter, and Vincent went off to do whatever it was he did when he was alone (think and enjoy his solitude, probably), only with Yuffie tagging along.

Poor him.

For the two minutes Marlene was taking out the trash, Tifa and Denzel remained silent, both varying degrees of upset.

It took less than three seconds after the little girl walked in to deduce the problem and huff, crossing her arms. "If Cloud doesn't want to spend time with us, it's his loss!"

This actually brought out a small smile from Denzel, but Tifa simply said, "It's not that he didn't want to spend time with us, he just had something he had to do, is all. There's nothing we can do about it."

Marlene accepted this happily enough, going over and climbing up next to the boy, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

But Denzel just scowled down at his knees. "And what was it that he had to do, exactly?"

A tense, uncomfortable moment of silence passed over the three.

Finally, Tifa muttered, "…I don't know." The young boy heard her whisper to herself, "…but I wish I did."

Frankly, she sounded bitter – and more than a little hurt.

The kids shot worried looks over their shoulders at their caretaker, but her face was turned away.

Marlene squeezed his shoulder in concern, while Denzel just sat with clenched fists, chewing furiously at his lip.

A few minutes later, Tifa finally joined them, a small smile – clearly forced, though the kids wouldn't tell her that – plastered on her face. "So. How about that movie, Denzel?"

He chose a comedy, in the hopes that it might lift the mood a bit.

All three of them laughed a few times, but it didn't seem to help much until Yuffie returned halfway through the flick. Generally, the ninja girl wasn't one to pick up on subtleties, so they must have been more obviously unhappy than they thought.

So, she overreacted to everything, enjoying the movie for the three of them. She laughed hysterically at things only somewhat funny, and complained loudly at things meant to be funny that weren't.

By the end, everyone was laughing and mostly cheered from their previous state, going to bed in a much better mood than they would have without the young woman's presence.

But still he had a nightmare.

* * *

"_They've got a cure for Geostigma."_

_That was all he needed to know. He really didn't know who this girl was, but she seemed like she was on his side – and how dangerous could a young girl with a plushy Moogle be, anyway? Maybe the dying stick together, until the end._

_He let her lead the way._

(PAGE BREAK)_  
_

_They had Marlene._

_They had Marlene, and she looked terrified, both for him, and for herself._

_So why couldn't he bring himself to care? What was __**wrong**__ with him? She was important to him. He couldn't just stand by and watch while these guys tormented her… could he?_

_His head was buzzing unpleasantly. In the back of his mind, a voice whispered to ignore her. Marlene didn't matter. If he tried to do anything, he'd never be cured. He'd die._

But maybe she's worth it_, he argued with himself._

_No. No one is worth dying for, except yourself._

_Denzel knew what would happen next; he'd seen it before, __**lived **__it before._

_But what was supposed to happen didn't._

_Instead, the three silver-haired men turned on him with maniacal expressions._

_The leader smirked. "Trying to resist, eh? Well, we can't have that…"_

_The one with the longest hair shot him a condescending leer. "Shall we punish him, then, Brother?"_

"_Not directly. He __**is**__ one of those blessed with Geostigma, after all. It wouldn't do to tarnish Mother's gift to us."_

_The big burly one grinned. "He likes the little girl."_

_Kadaj smiled maliciously. "Of course. Take that which he cares for most away from him. Loz, you know what to do."_

_In response, Loz let out a bark of laughter before grabbing Marlene roughly by the wrist and beginning to drag her away – her protests were weak and futile._

_And Denzel was rooted to the ground, the voice in his head suggesting, no, __**demanding**__, that he let them go. Telling him to watch, to soak in every last image of her, as he'd never see her again._

You're wrong!_ He shouted inwardly. _I won't let them do this! If listening to you means losing her, then I'd rather keep my Geostigma! I'd rather _die!_

_"__Marlene!"_

_He began to run. And the voice was gone, long gone; banished._

_His pounding footsteps mixed with the sound of his equally pounding heart, as he chased after all that mattered._

_But he was pushed back roughly, suddenly. He didn't even know what had hit him until he'd regained his senses and felt the cool metal at his forehead._

_Yazoo sneered at him, gun poised and ready to do away with him. "You're a tough one, to resist the influence. But just because we won't kill you doesn't mean we can't have a little fun with you if you get on our bad side… Mother wouldn't mind if we played with you, gave you a few scratches... we just can't break you, is all."_

_Denzel didn't care what the man was saying. He wanted, __**needed**__ to get to Marlene. Needed to save her, and bring her back to Tifa, and the three of them would live happily… until he died, anyway._

_The voice was back, whispering traitorous thoughts into his head. She'll cry if you die. Maybe you can save her, but for what? She'll be heartbroken once you're gone…_

_These words were harder to ignore than the others, because they were more likely to be true. He shook his head, futilely trying to banish the voice once more._

Maybe… maybe she will be sad. But at least she'll be alive. That's what matters to me!

_Up ahead, Loz was disappearing, still dragging the despairing girl along, who was now screaming for Denzel-Tifa-Cloud-Daddy, someone, __**anyone**__! Her free hand clawing at his vice-like grip did nothing._

_Gathering his strength, the boy shoved roughly past the silver-haired man and began running once more, desperate to catch up, to save her._

_He could do it. He __**could**__ save her, and he __**would.**_

_But a sudden, searing pain in his right calf sent him tumbling down. Distantly, he wondered what had happened, as his mind was slow in focusing on something other than the figures retreating from his view._

_It took a moment to register that the sound he'd heard but dismissed seconds ago had been a gunshot, and that there was a bullet lodged deeply in his leg._

_Looking up woozily, two pairs of green eyes were closing in fast. And in those eyes he saw the voice, and it reached out to him, stronger than ever._

_You __**will**__ obey me, you __**will!**_

I… won't_, he protested weakly._

_Then you shall suffer._

_And the pain in his leg was instantly forgotten, as now his head was pounding and hurting; it felt like it was about to explode._

_Eyes wide and hands clutching his head in agony, anything he might've been about to say came out as a garbled choke._

_He heard laughter from the two above him, but it sounded distant._

_He blacked out.

* * *

_

Denzel shot up in bed, panting heavily, sweating profusely, and with tears pricking at his eyes.

He resolved once more to get stronger; he'd _never_ let something like that happen in real life.

He'd protect those he loved, or die trying.

* * *

AN – So yeah, this is, for all intents and purposes, the prologue, although the next chapter takes place the next day (it's also when the action starts!), and then a time skip (although there will be at least two or three chapters before that)… I'm very iffy about this fic, personally. Not sure if I've got what it takes to write something of epic proportions, plus make something good enough to keep people interested the whole way through. Reviews (especially constructive criticism) would immensely help.


	2. It Begins

AN - This is updated a _bit _sooner than scheduled, but that's because I wanted to do it now, so I can always update right at the beginning of the month from now on, which is easier than some random set date in the middle. Anyway, enjoy~!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. So there.

* * *

**It Begins**

"Denzel, are you okay?"

It was the following day, and the two kids had just gotten out of school.

The boy in question looked over at the girl currently walking alongside him. "…I'm fine. Why?"

Marlene frowned and looked at her feet. "Well, it's just… you've been acting funny since this morning. Did you have a nightmare or something?"

He stiffened noticeably, but kept walking, not saying a word.

The young girl sighed unhappily. "Um… never mind. You don't have to tell me."

Still focusing on her feet, she kept walking – and promptly ran into him.

Denzel had come to a sudden halt, looking up at the sky.

Marlene frowned and followed his gaze. "Denzel? What… Oh!"

It was a little difficult to see in the daylight, but what looked to be a shooting star was passing overhead.

She smiled and grabbed his arm. "It's so pretty… make a wish, Denzel!"

He shook his head. "…That's not a shooting star, Marlene. It's a comet, or a meteor, or something."

She pouted at that. "Oh… Really?"

"Yeah." He nodded, and in addition to the serious expression on his face, she noted that his fists were clenched. "Let's… get home, okay?"

Marlene nodded solemnly and slid her hand down to one of his own, gently uncurling his fist and entwining their fingers – not only did she like holding his hand, but this way they wouldn't get separated if something happened.

"Right."

She wondered briefly what the feeling of dread creeping over her meant, and if he felt it, too.

* * *

From where she was going over the – spotless – counter with a wet rag, Tifa frowned, looking worriedly out the window. "It's sure getting dark quickly… I hope everyone makes it back okay."

Most of the group had set out early in the morning, with Barrett making a quick pit stop at the bar to say goodbye to his daughter before she left for school.

The only exceptions were Yuffie, who had slept in late and left only an hour and a half ago, and Vincent, who planned to stay in town for another day or two, not really having much to do otherwise.

Glancing at the clock, she saw that the children would be getting home from school soon, and busied herself with making some quick after-school snacks for them – she'd gone grocery shopping earlier to restock, though now it wasn't the fridge but her _wallet_ that was worrisomely empty.

It was at that point that Yuffie, bloody and out of breath, burst in. She huffed and wheezed for a minute while the elder woman stared in shock before straightening up to yell, "Teef! There is something wrong going on!"

Coming out from behind the counter, Tifa frowned searchingly at her friend while wiping the girl with the wet clothe – none of the blood on her appeared to be her own, thankfully. "What do you mean, wrong?"

"I _mean_, there are fiends swarming the town from every direction!" the young woman exclaimed, waving her arms around frantically.

For just a moment, her heart stopped beating; her blood ran cold. She shook away the numb feeling trying to overcome her and protested, "But that's not possible! Surely _someone _would've noticed a swarm of fiends approaching before now!"

At that Yuffie looked away nervously. "About that… I _did_ see an awful lot of fiends on the way here, but they didn't seem to be heading towards Edge, so I dismissed it. Figured it was mating season, or something."

"_Yuffie!_"

Another voice chimed in, "She has a point. I also noticed the large number of fiends in the vicinity, but they didn't appear to be a threat. Now, though…"

Tifa bit her lip, turning to the eternally-youthful man who had come in quietly. "What, Vincent? A large swarm on the city is dangerous, but they're still just fiends. Even if they make it into the city, we could still make quick work of them… right?"

The man in question shook his head. "I believe they have been influenced here by a stronger power. Killing them would do nothing, in the long run. It's best to take out the leader, and, failing that… fall back."

"You mean _retreat?_" The ninja girl asked in disbelief.

His red eyes bored down on the girl. "That's exactly what I mean. This city isn't the best field for battle in the first place, but as is we're at low numbers, and wouldn't last long if we couldn't end it quickly. The best strategy would be to fall back, regroup, and try again at a later time."

Yuffie scoffed. "I'm the _Great Ninja Yuffie!_ I helped save the _world_, and _twice_, at that! There's no way I'll willingly retreat!"

Vincent glared. "It's your funeral, then."

Ever the mediator, Tifa stepped in between the two, offering a placating smile at them both, though it quickly fell due to distress. "We'll discuss this later, okay? More importantly, Denzel and Marlene are out there! I've got to find them! If anything were to happen, I…"

The man gave a curt nod of understanding. "We'll be able to find them faster if we split up."

Yuffie nodded. "Right! Don't worry, Teef! I'm sure _one _of us will find them, safe and unharmed."

Tifa sure hoped so.

And the snacks went completely forgotten.

* * *

While he'd been suspicious for a few minutes now, Denzel became absolutely sure that there was something wrong the moment they encountered a wolf-like fiend.

In the _city_.

And of course, like all fiends seem instinctually programmed to do, it immediately tried to attack, rushing in with fangs at the ready.

And Marlene screamed. Loudly, and in terror.

Denzel – he wanted to scream. So badly. Because really, he was only ten years old; how was he _supposed _to react? What did double digits add up to when faced with something like _this?_

But he'd resolved just last night to protect her, and he'd be damned if he failed due to a random fiend that had inexplicably gotten into the city.

…The city that had guards stationed at every entrance, just to prevent this kind of thing. One slipping by seemed unlikely, so…

But now wasn't the time to think about that. Gripping Marlene's hand tightly, he yanked her into a run – the wolf may have intercepted their route to Tifa, to _safety_, but they could take a longer way around that _didn't _involve getting past a bloodthirsty beast.

They just had to outrun one – and that was _so _much better.

* * *

"…The hell's happening out there?"

In typical Rude fashion, the larger man's only response was a shrug.

With his elbow on the windowsill and his head lying lazily in his open hand, Reno watched the carnage below with indifference. "_Yeesh_, the guards are getting _slaughtered_. Who'd of thought a couple of fiends could be so dangerous?"

The blonde woman to his side scowled. "Instead of watching like its some cool new show on TV, how about we go down there and, oh, I don't know, _help?_"

Reno shrugged with his free hand. "Why bother helping those who could get wasted by lowly fiends like those, anyway? Survival of the fittest, Laney."

"Or the smartest," his partner quipped.

The redhead smiled. "_Exactly_. See, the three of us _could_ go down there and help out, but that'd be risking our own lives. It's one thing to help someone on the street against one opponent, it's another thing entirely to go down there and fight countless fiends just to save a few sorry people too weak to save themselves."

Elena huffed and glared. "You two… I don't get it! You're honestly not all that bad, so why be so cruel now?"

Reno sighed at the woman's persistence. "Ever heard the phrase, 'nice guys finish last, Laney?"

Rude continued, "The more kind-hearted you are, the more likely you are to die."

The redhead rolled his eyes at her obvious confusion. "Turks are constantly put in situations where it's all they can do to stay alive. You can't afford to think of anyone else before yourself. Or do I need to remind you what's happened to _other _Turks who tried to 'do the right thing'?"

Elena bristled rather visibly and promptly slugged the man in the arm. "How dare you? Bringing her into it…"

Rubbing his arm – the blonde _was_ a fist fighter, so naturally her blows _did_ hurt – Reno decided it might be time to change the subject, before she hit him somewhere that he cared about. "So, Rude. D'ya think that meteor's got something to do with the fiend invasion?"

The bald man gave a noncommittal shrug. "Maybe."

Before Reno could jokingly complain at this non-answer, the three stopped and swiveled to face the door in unison, listening attentively to swiftly approaching footsteps and automatically preparing for a fight.

But the person to burst through the door was Tseng.

This fact did nothing to calm the three, because – Tseng was a very calm, careful person. The fact that he had ran so quickly, not even bothering to try and hide his footfalls, and was before them now with a panicked expression made all three of them varying degrees of nervous.

Reno – always the one to take things in stride – recovered first. "What's up, Boss?"

Now normally, the man would've taken a moment give a reproachful glare at the redhead for being so blasé. The fact that he didn't this time made them all more anxious.

"The President… Jenova… she—"

Reno held up a hand. "Wait, wait. That witch? She's dead. _Decapitated_. What about her?"

Tseng drew in a breath. "She's never been dead. All along. She's just been dormant up until now. Sleeping, if you will. I don't know if there _is _a way to get rid of her truly, but that's not the point. Just moments ago, she suddenly woke up, and to Rufus, she—"

"She killed the President?" Elena shrieked.

"No." The three Turks let out a collective sigh of relief, but… "She _possessed _him."

"_Possessed?_" the blonde spluttered.

Reno readied his EMR, scowling. "Well let's go knock that bitch right out of him then."

Tseng glared. "You think I didn't _try _to free him? Her control is too strong. Short of harming, potentially even _killing _him, I'm at a loss on what to do… And she's not alone."

Rude echoed, "Not alone?"

The leader of the Turks sighed. "Remember the Remnants?"

Now, Reno spluttered. "Those three guys? From two years ago? I _know _they died!"

"That they did. But somehow, Jenova brought them back."

"And of course, they'd do _anything_ for their _mother_," the redhead sneered.

Elena bit her thumb worriedly. "If those three are there…"

The black haired man nodded. "…We probably won't be able to do anything. As frustrating as it is, we should probably beat a hasty retreat."

Rude crossed his arms and eyed the man critically through his ubiquitous shades. "Go underground?"

"For the time being. Elena and I will gather the necessary supplies, while you two… get out there and get those you can to safety."

"_Seriously?_" Reno whined.

Tseng sent another glare his way. "In addition to AVALANCHE, we're the best Edge has got right now. We're not the bad guys, anymore, remember. As such, it's only right that we save those we can."

And despite the seriousness of the situation, Elena still found the time to send Reno a smirk and boast, "I told you so."

Reno scowled and sent her off with a one-finger salute – his middle finger, that is.

* * *

AN – I love writing the Turks. Especially Reno. Anyways, like I said last chapter, please review. Oh, and don't worry about Jenova inexplicably reviving herself _and _the brothers. I've got an explanation for everything saved up for a later chapter, although I've made it fairly obvious as is – or at least done some seriously obvious foreshadowing. Reviews encourage me to keep writing~!


	3. The Remnants Run Rampant

**The Remnants Run Rampant**

They were running.

Fifteen minutes in, and the chase was still on, with them going fast and as strong as possible. But that damn wolf was still right on their heels.

Marlene gasped and huffed, "Denzel! I… I don't think… I can do this much longer!"

Chancing a glance behind himself, the boy saw that she was probably right. She was lagging behind, and the more they ran, the more he had to drag her along as opposed to them both carrying their own weight.

Marlene was struggling to keep her eyes open and looked about five seconds away from passing out.

He considered briefly telling her to get on his back and carrying her, but he knew he wasn't strong enough to keep that up for any period of time.

Truthfully, he was starting to feel the fatigue, too.

That meant that if they kept running, they'd probably collapse from exhaustion, no matter how perilous the situation was. The hope for help was still there, but if someone hadn't come yet, then what was to say they'd miraculously show up now?

That left only one option – and unfortunately, a quick survey of the area yielded nothing that could be used to fight, nor defend themselves.

So, he stopped. Stopped and caught the girl as she stumbled from the sudden halt, turning them around so that _he _would be the one to take any blows the fiend was ready to dish out.

If there was no sword, he'd fight with his fists. If there was no shield, he'd protect her with his body.

Marlene looked up at him, wild-eyed and panicked. "Denzel! What are you doing?"

Her knees were shaking terribly, he noted, just from the effort of holding herself up. He crushed her smaller form against his chest, shifting to take on more of her weight. "Don't worry. I'll protect you."

"But, but—"

He hushed her with a finger to her lips, and turned his head to the side, noticing that the wolf had come to a halt only two feet from him, baring its fangs viciously.

And then it sprang.

Mentally apologizing, he shoved the girl backwards and out of harm's way, quickly using the momentum to spin sideways and away from the pointed teeth the creature possessed.

In the split-second between the fiend hitting nothing but air and coming back to the ground, Denzel made his move, leaping forward and delivering a hard blow to its stomach.

The fiend gave a yowl of pain, but recovered before it even hit the ground, turning to growl fiercely at him.

_Of course, _he thought bitterly_. I should've known I couldn't take it down that easily. Hell, most fiends are capable of taking on experienced fighters with actual __**weapons**__ and still coming out on top. Just because this one's considered fairly weak doesn't mean a child can beat it._

_Plus_, he continued on internally, breathing heavily, shaking his head hastily as his vision blurred for just a moment, _I'm already pretty tired. I may be able to stall it, but __**kill **__it? I've got no chance…_

_And that's just sad. Totally pathetic. How can I expect to help __**anyone **__if I can't even beat one of the weakest fiends?_

"Marlene."

The girl in question had picked herself up from where she'd fallen and was watching the wolf approaching him with abject terror. "Denzel…"

He sighed and exhaled slowly, trying to think of a good plan but coming up blank. "You should… keep running. I can only hold it off for so long."

Marlene shook her head immediately, fists clenching and unclenching as she stood there uselessly. "No! I'm not leaving you here!"

The wolf pounced once more; again, he ducked out of the way and punched it in the side.

In response, it struck out with a clawed hind leg, leaving a nasty scratch on the arm he wasn't quick enough to pull back.

"You can go find help!" he pleaded. "I'll be okay. Don't worry!"

It was a lie, and they both knew it. But before the girl could call him out on it, with tears in her eyes, another voice broke in.

"You're right; you _will _be okay."

From the rooftop she'd been standing on, Tifa leapt down and landed hard right on top of the fiend, crushing it instantly.

She didn't give the wolf a second glance, going straight for Denzel and burying him in a hug, which Marlene quickly got in on, as well. "You two… I was so worried! I have no idea what I would've done if that wolf had gotten you. Thank you… thank you so much, just for staying alive…"

Marlene nodded and cried happily into her surrogate mother's chest, while Denzel blushed in embarrassment at the words. "Um… we probably _wouldn't _have made it without you. So thank _you_."

The woman nodded and placed a loving kiss on his forehead, causing him to blush even harder. Admittedly, there had been a time when he was used to this kind of attention. His parents had always spoiled him as much as they could, and his mother in particular had been touchy-feely, but…

Tifa usually tried to be reserved. Friendly, but distant. For her to be so affectionate now, they must've really had her worried.

Hesitantly, he began to return the hug, when—

"Well isn't this _sweet_."

And all three stiffened, because all three recognized the voice.

The voice that Denzel had heard in his nightmares just last night, and many other nights before.

Tifa glared up at Kadaj and his brother in disbelief. "You. You should be dead!"

The man gave a contemptuous sneer. "For the truly powerful, death is _cheap_."

Loz grinned. "That's why, for you, it'll be permanent."

The woman's gaze intensified, and she muttered, "…You're not on our side, are you."

It wasn't a question, not really. She and the children already knew the answer.

But sill Yazoo answered. "Quite the astute one, aren't you?"

Tifa just kept on glaring, tightening her grip around the two kids. She tried to subtly look both ways. Maybe help was already on its way—

"Your friends won't come to your rescue this time. The girl is caught fighting a horde of fiends that, while probably not enough to kill her, will keep her busy for quite some time, and the man is busy trying to help out at one of the gates."

The tone in his voice made her hate Kadaj and his brothers – and _Sephiroth_, when would he just _die_; leave and never come back, Remnants included? – all the more. So she would have to fight alone.

She could probably keep _one _of them occupied, potentially even win, but all three?

Leaning down and turning her head away so the three wouldn't see what she was doing, she whispered, "You two. I'll try and distract them. Run. Run far and run fast. Find someone to help, if you can. Okay?"

Denzel gave her a disbelieving look. "But!—"

She squeezed his arm tightly. "You _have _to do this. Okay? If you give those three the chance… They. Will. Kill you. For the fun of it, to hurt me; give them any reason to get at you and they _will_. That's why you have to leave – and close your eyes. _Now_!"

That said, she shoved them roughly to the side – they both had the foresight to listen to her previous order and had their eyes tightly shut – and called down a bolt of lightning, closing her eyes – from where they were standing, the three brothers hadn't been able to see her reaching for her pocket.

She figured that doing so would not only draw their attention solely to her, but it'd temporarily blind – and deafen – them, allowing the kids a chance to escape.

When she opened her eyes, however, only Kadaj was still standing where he'd been before. His brothers were gone, presumably off chasing Denzel and Marlene.

She went to dart after them, of course, but was blocked almost immediately.

Blinking rapidly to gain back perfect sight, Kadaj muttered something that she was only able to understand through reading his lips – she may have been able to close her eyes, but she hadn't had the time to block her ears, so she was as hard of hearing right now as he was. "Think I'd let you get away that easily? No, you're a potential problem later on, so I'm going to kill you."

In response, she raised her fists and prepared for a fight, hoping desperately that the children would successfully escape all the while.

* * *

Both of them wanted to go back, wanted to try and find _some _way to help the woman who'd devoted so much of her time and affection to them.

But they couldn't.

So, for her sake, if no one else's, they ran on.

They were still exhausted from their last escapade, but at least Denzel could feel a second wind coming on. Maybe it was the adrenaline rush from trying to outrun Yazoo and Loz?

But at whatever the cost, he wouldn't let things turn out like they had in his dream. He absolutely _wouldn't_.

Chancing a glance backwards, he could see that the brothers were nowhere to be seen. Common sense – and a healthy dose of paranoia – told him that they were without a doubt hanging around somewhere nearby, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

But still he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

And then out of his peripheral vision Marlene skidded to a halt, eyes widening in undeniable terror. She screamed something that sounded vaguely like a warning to his still abysmal hearing.

And he ran right into a towering, rock hard chest, immediately falling backwards painfully.

He let out a loud curse, and then covered his mouth, eyes darting guiltily towards the young girl beside him. But she either hadn't heard, or just didn't care – both were fairly likely; her hearing was probably still returning like his own, and clearly her focus was solely on the giant of a man leering down at them.

Denzel shakily got to his feet, immediately getting in front of and placing a protective arm across Marlene.

_This is the slower one, right? I mean, mentally __**and**__ physically. If it's just him, maybe I can distract him somehow, and we can get away—_

But then Yazoo leapt down from out of nowhere to join his brother, murmuring, "You weren't planning on having all the fun without me, now, were you?"

And the long haired man's presence solidified the situation in Denzel's mind.

It was his worst nightmare come to life.

* * *

Yuffie let out a stream of curses – in her native language, of course. She couldn't let the locals think she, the _princess_ of Wutai, was a potty-mouth, now could she? – and promptly sent out another round of throwing stars, felling two of the beasts and injuring three.

But despite her current status as a monster-killing machine, she still wasn't making much headway. For every monster down, two more came to replace it.

"I'm never gonna find the kids like this!" she complained loudly, slashing one of the wolves brave enough to approach with her huge shuriken. "Heck, I'll be lucky if I'm out of here by next _week!_"

_Sheesh. Where's Cloud – or Vincent, for that matter – when you need him?

* * *

_

Vincent took careful aim and let a loud shot fire out, killing one of the dozens of fiends instantly. The wolf's attempted prey, a guard, got to his feet slowly, shaking in fear of the situation, and mumbled a thanks.

The man simply nodded solemnly and quickly took care of a few more fiends – most of them were wolves, though a few tougher creatures had snuck into the mix, including, surprisingly enough, a monstrous house.

He hadn't planned on helping out the guards, despite knowing that they would indeed be the first to die in this situation. It was just… their cries for help had been too much to ignore.

Those around him… his _friends_… it was their influence, he mused, absentmindedly putting bullets through a few unlucky creatures

Even as a Turk, he liked to believe that he had never been a _bad_ person, per se. But it was only recently that he could honestly say he was a good one.

He liked helping others. Liked knowing they appreciated his efforts. And so here he was.

But…

To say that the loud, obvious crash of thunder – clearly materia-made – from a few miles away had been suspicious would be an understatement.

But even more worrying was the presence of two powerful figures located nearby. Presences that he distantly recognized…

He had to get moving.

* * *

"Marlene," he whispered. _Please hear me. I don't have the guts to say anything louder than this. If they hear me…_

She hugged the arm thrust out in front of her and sent him an inquiring glance to show that she'd heard him.

"I'll get you out of this, okay? If I can, I'll make sure you get the chance to run. No matter what, _take it_, alright?"

She squeezed his arm even tighter – almost to the point of pain – and furrowed an unhappy brow. "But—"

"No buts. You _have _to do this. You have to get away, and then… Well, if we're lucky, you'll find help."

"And if we're _not_?"

He didn't want to think about that. About the gun pointed at him right this second, or the almost inevitable bullets ripping into him, lodging deep and painful.

He didn't want to think of her sadness, her screams; he violently pushed the thoughts of _her_ fate to the farthest corner of his mind.

"Let's just hope we do."

Again, Marlene began to protest. "But—"

And then Loz was grabbing her by the wrist and _dragging her_ _away, she was screaming his name, Tifa's name, Cloud's name, her father's name; why would no one help her? Why could he __**not**__ help her?_

No. That was a _dream_, dammit.

The large man put himself in between the two children, snapping, "No talking!"

And Denzel went to reach for her, regain the contact he'd lost, but the casual cocking of a gun that was pointed his way stopped him dead in his tracks.

Yazoo smiled and approached the quivering lad. "That's a good boy. Don't act out of turn, and _maybe _we won't kill you."

Marlene struggled against the man's huge hand, beating it uselessly with her free hand. By this point, though, she had had enough.

The numerous and terrifying events of the day had drained away all the fear she had left. Her face now was just a blank slate, showing nothing but resignation. And yet…

She was crying.

A little known secret – the girl blubbers. Like a baby. When she cries, it is loud and _far_ from pretty.

But now, _right now_, she was quiet. Not a single sound was escaping her; not even a single whimper. Were it not for the steady stream of tears flowing down her face, not a soul would've believed she was in any way unhappy.

And for Denzel, this out of character reaction was the final straw. Sure, he was terrified, but she was, too, to the point where she had gone practically _numb_. He could save her, somehow. He _would_.

He bowed his head as a feigned display of obedience and took inventory of the ground.

Rocks. Lots and lots of them, though only a select few would be any good. These few were roughly palm-sized, and, were he to guess, probably weighed about two or three pounds.

He figured that it would be enough to do at least a little damage, and, failing that, at least _stun_ the two for that one crucial moment.

There was really no way to hide that he was going for them, though. He could only hope the brothers would humor him and not shoot him through the head before he'd obtained his quarry.

He bent down low and dove for the two big rocks that were already together.

Loz tensed, tightening his grip on Marlene's wrist, to which she cried in pain, but Yazoo just let out a derisive snort. "Going to beat me up with rocks, hmm?"

Standing, Denzel had to resist the manic urge to smile. The reaction of the enemy wasn't something he'd accounted for beyond hoping they'd let him attempt a fight, but this could actually work out even better than anticipated. After all…

"I have to try, don't I?"

And Yazoo actually _lowered his gun_, genuinely humoring the boy. "But of course. Why not let you get one good hit in before I kill you, hmm? Die with pride, and whatnot?"

_Checkmate. _Regardless of the scorn evident in the man's voice, he had no intention of stopping the boy from chucking a rock or two at him – obviously knowing that two measly rocks would probably do next to nothing, in the grand scheme of things.

_Unless you factor in one little thing…_

Denzel raised his arms, and, with all his might… threw both rocks in quick succession at, of course, Loz.

Having not expected the meager attack in the slightest, the man actually flinched and withdrew his hand into the relative safety of his chest area – the same hand that had been holding Marlene.

And for once, _for once_, she followed orders and made a break for it.

Never underestimate the element of surprise.

* * *

AN – I'm leaving it there for now. Yes, I'm torturing you all with a cliffhanger. Terrible, aren't I? Only two more chapters till the time skip. Oh, and I'm thinking about trying out lengthier chapters. I _might_ have to lengthen the time between updates to do this, but I'm talking a lot more bulk per chapter (at least twice the amount of the current chapters, which have about 2,500 roughly each), so… I'm letting you decide. For now, chapters will be a _little_ longer and I'll continue on my once a month basis, but if you want longer chapters, I'll do that (I'm thinking for that I'll have updates be somewhere between a month and a half to two months). But yeah, as always, I look forward to reviews.


	4. The Separation

AN - Oops! I totally forgot, so I'm one day late, but... it's good enough. Happy Halloween, folks. Enjoy~!

* * *

**The Separation**

Loz cursed as the little girl escaped from his clutches… and went straight for the cause of it.

Just like Denzel hoped, and this time he didn't bother to hide his grin, going down for another bout of rocks.

Yazoo, however, remained rational. "You idiot, don't go after _him_, go after the _girl!_"

The bigger man frowned and opened his mouth to protest, but his brother silenced him with a pointed glare and a gesture that vaguely indicated that he should get going.

And he did so, mumbling angrily and turning around.

But Denzel stopped him, _again_, with a rock perfectly aimed – it hit the man's empty head with a satisfying thud.

And _again_, he cursed loudly, wanting nothing more than to strangle the little twerp.

The long haired man snarled, "Leave him! I'll make sure he gets proper punishment for the _both _of us!"

The giant nodded and sent a resentful glare at the boy before lumbering off – thankfully Marlene had quite a head start by now.

Denzel grinned at this fact and hurled yet another rock, this time at Yazoo. If he could catch the man unawares, then he could maybe get him to drop his gun, and then…

But the man was sharp; he immediately sensed the incoming danger, and swung around, using his gun as a blunt weapon. He hit the rock hard, redirecting it right at the poor boy.

He only barely managed to dodge the thing by diving onto the – quite painful – ground. And from there, things just got worse, because the man took the opportunity to aim, and…

Denzel rolled sideways a few times as quickly as he could and tried to ignore the loud ringing in his ears, thanking his lucky stars every time a bullet _just _missed him.

The man cursing was the only indication he needed to get up and run – if he could just get a suitable distance between them while the silver haired man took a moment to reload his gun…

Yazoo shouted, "It won't be that easy! You think you can outrun _me?_ No, boy; you're just a _sitting duck_! Keep running, because the moment I catch up, you're _doomed_!"

Denzel wasn't one to take advice from strangers, but he figured that this was pretty a solid suggestion.

He kept running.

* * *

Marlene could hear the large man crashing around and just generally making his presence known behind her.

_Close_ behind her. He was catching up.

Her whole body was screaming in pain at this point – she'd never been the most athletic person to begin with, but this had gone far beyond a school-mandated workout in the gym.

She was running on pure adrenaline by this point, surely.

_I just want to go home. I want to go home, get in bed and go to sleep, only to wake up and realize this was all a dream. A vivid, horribly realistic dream, but a dream nonetheless._

_And then Denzel and I will be safe with Tifa, and she'll make us afterschool snacks like she always does, and we'll all be happy…_

She shook the thoughts away, mouth set in a grim, determined line. _I've got to find help._

_Find help… but who? Who out there can actually help against these… these __**things?**_

She flinched as she heard yet another gunshot, praying desperately for Denzel's safety…

And then she smiled as a realization struck her – this gunshot sounded familiar, and it came from a different direction than the other ones had.

* * *

Still running through the city streets, Denzel took a quick breath and swerved right.

Sure enough, another shot rang out, and he could feel the force of a bullet whizzing by on his left.

There was an angry, intelligible shout from behind, and despite himself, he smiled. While Yazoo was far from harmless, three lucky dodges in, he'd realized that the man attacked at a set interval of time, and once he'd figured out that, it just became a challenge of waiting until the last second to move so the man couldn't adjust the shot.

And while he was definitely doing well, all things considered, just having to wait like this came with its own risks – his grazed, aching shoulder was a sure testament to that.

He was pretty sure his ears were bleeding out from continued abuse to his eardrums, too.

Turning a corner sharply, he ran headfirst into a sturdy chest, immediately falling backwards.

_This is the second time in one day. _He shook the thought away and briefly came into contact with yet another danger.

He was face to face with a rod absolutely brimming with electricity. The weapon crackled ominously, before its owner let out an unhappy sigh and switched it off.

Reno glared down at the boy and reluctantly offered a hand to pull him up. "Geez, kid, what's the rush? Is Hell itself right on your heels?"

Denzel shot up without taking the proffered hand and skittered behind the redhead. He wasn't above the idea of using the man who'd almost thoughtlessly killed him as a shield, if it came right down to it. "_Worse_."

Reno laughed at the kid's balls, shooting his silent partner a look. _We've gotta get this kid to safety. Boss's orders._

Rude nodded, adjusting his shades, and angled his head toward the corner Denzel had shot around. _We should probably take care of whatever he's so afraid of while we're at it._

The redhead slumped, frowning. _Aw, hell, I don't want to stick around. It's probably just another goddamn wolf, anyway. There's no variety around here, I tell ya._

Rude crossed his arms stayed put. _Reno. Tseng's orders. If helping this boy involves taking care of a few fiends, then so be it._

The smaller man was about to raise a verbal protest, but it was at that moment that the presence became close enough for them to feel it. He shot his partner another look – _Looks like the decision's been made for us _– and readied his weapon.

Yazoo barreled around the corner, gun cocked, finger at the trigger. Conversely, Reno had his EMR cranked up and ready to kill. Rude had his fists balled, completely prepared to wreak havoc with only his bare hands – and if all else failed, he had a gun in his pocket along with a spare pair of sunglasses. Just in case.

In a matter of seconds, weapons found purchase inches away from necks.

Reno smirked, as if there _wasn't _a gun poised and ready to blow his brains out within minutes. "Shouldn't you be dead?"

In a similar situation with an EMR crackling so closely that he could feel the electricity running through his system, Yazoo smiled. "Shouldn't you?"

_Ah. Wording. _"Touché." He raised his free hand in a careless shrug, pretending to ignore the suspicion in the other man's eyes. "I guess I just don't have it in me, dying. How would I drink myself into a stupor with booze and pick up women in Hell?"

The man gaze a sardonic smile in reply, and Reno continued on, "Although I guess I don't have much to worry about, after all. Because _apparently_, death is cheap."

Yazoo frowned and pressed a little harder at the trigger—

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Rude's calm, mostly silent presence by his side was always a consolation. But the gun the man was pointing at the silver haired man was much, much better.

He grinned. "Now, see, I don't know how your _mother_ brought you back, and frankly, I don't care – hell, I don't even know how _she's _back. But regardless, we're gonna kill you again, so I'd take this time to give your last words, if I were you. You know the drill; regrets, confessions, defiance, goodbyes, we take it all here."

Yazoo threw his head back melodramatically, lowering his gun once more. "We brothers three have been resurrected to perform a simple mission… A mission I still intend to complete!"

Faster than the two men could've predicted, he drew his weapon up and shot the larger man in the shoulder, downing him instantly.

Reno cursed and glanced between his bleeding partner and the criminal he definitely wanted to kill, and let out a slew of bad words before going to stand protectively in front of his partner – Denzel, ashen faced and practically comatose, tagging along.

Yazoo just gave a scornful smile. "Consider yourselves lucky to be alive!" With that as a parting shot, he leapt off.

Denzel couldn't help but feel as if that last statement had been directed at him.

* * *

The creatures pouring into the city finally seemed to be thinning. This was a good thing, though more than a little belated – the guards had either run off or died in their foolish attempts at being valiant.

Vincent had tried his best to protect those that had chosen to stay, of course, but there were just too many fiends. Every time he saved one man, another was immediately thrust into peril.

Taking out yet another wolf – they had always been a species that thrived in numbers, but this was getting ridiculous, quite frankly – he backed up another ten feet. He was trying his hardest to inch into the city, little by little.

If those presences from earlier really were who he thought they were… Well, that made the gunshots – including the one just a few minutes ago – he'd been worrying over all the worse.

* * *

It was only when she caught sight of him, with his red cloak and golden claw, that she finally allowed herself to stumble and fall to the ground in exhaustion. "…Vincent!"

The figure turned around at her shout, and approached her swiftly… but she was losing consciousness by this point. Perhaps the person in front of her wasn't Vincent at all, but an angel?

Maybe Loz had caught up to her and crushed her with one powerful blow, killing her instantly, and this was all a dream while she waited to get sent to the Lifestream.

Or maybe Vincent himself _was_ an angel. An angel cloaked in red. Red… as in, blood. _A blood-covered angel…_

With this thought, she blacked out completely.

* * *

Vincent was by her side immediately, checking her pulse and heartbeat. Once he'd determined that she was in no danger of dying, he turned to face the cause of her distress.

Loz had stopped upon seeing his new opponent, though that didn't necessarily mean he'd be able to talk his way out of a fight – but that didn't mean he couldn't try.

"If you know what's good for you, you'll turn back. I won't let you take her."

The large man snorted. "Oh, yeah? We'll see about that. I know that you're strong, but I bet I can take you."

Vincent sighed and shook his head. "You have no idea. Believe me, you don't want me to fight you properly. You'll lose."

Loz, of course, got offended by this, and opened his mouth to shout a challenge, but it was at this point that Yazoo, a bit out of breath but no worse for wear, leapt down beside him.

He grinned as Vincent's whole stature stiffened and radiated unease. "Not so sure of yourself now, are you? We can take you, easy!"

Yazoo sighed and flicked hair out of his face, snapping, "We don't have time for that! You and I have to get Kadaj and go complete our _mission_. You know…?"

The taller man started. "Oh, that's right! Well…" he trailed off, shooting an unhappy look at the vampiric man before him. "…you just consider yourself lucky that I've got better things to do!"

Like his brother, it appeared that all it took to satisfy the man was getting in a parting shot – funnily enough, it was even the _same _shot as Yazoo's had been, not that Vincent would've known that.

The two left in a hurry, which was fine to the man, considering he hadn't been totally sure he'd be able to defeat them both – at least, not without the help of Chaos, and he _really_ didn't want to do that.

_Afraid of my power… weakling_.

He deigned not to answer the beast within and picked up the unconscious girl gently, checking her over for injuries once more.

He had no clue where Denzel, who was supposed to have been with her, was, but he figured the best way to find the boy would be to backtrack – he had a sinking suspicion he'd find his quarry somewhere in the vicinity of the multiple gunshots from a while back.

* * *

All in all, she'd been faring pretty well against Kadaj. So when he suddenly smirked and put some distance between them, she was naturally suspicious enough to call up a Protect barrier.

It was a good thing she did, too, because she wouldn't have been able to dodge the bullet that came speeding down at her, cracking but not breaking her barrier.

Yazoo and Loz stood together on a roof, and Kadaj quickly bounded up to join them.

Denzel and Marlene were nowhere to be seen, and she wasn't sure whether to feel dread or relief at that. Nevertheless, she readied her fists and fell into a fighting stance – the odds weren't in her favor at all, but she wasn't going down without a fight.

The leader noticed her determined glare and snorted. "Oh, come off it. If we _really_ went at you together, you'd be dead before you could count to ten. Consider yourself lucky that we've got somewhere else to be. A prior appointment, if you will."

She narrowed her gaze and murmured, "What?"

But they couldn't even be bother to answer her, taking off in the sort of synchronized fashion that only close siblings could have – or perhaps, she speculated, they all had inherited that particular movement from Sephiroth. They were synchronized because they were literally moving as _one person_.

She thought about just going home, waiting, _hoping_ that her kids – and they damn well _were_ her kids, regardless of who their biological parents were. She'd raised Marlene since the girl was about two and a half, and Denzel had been with them for over three years now! She'd earned the right to call them her own – would either already be there or wander through the door at any given moment.

But not even that was enough. She had to go out and _search _for them. Trying to recall just where she'd sent them, and, failing that, where those gunshots had come from, she set off.

And she ran into Vincent, carrying Marlene – _Oh, thank god, she's alright… Now if only we could find Denzel_ – and scouring over the "scene of the crime" thoroughly.

He passed the girl to her without a word, and she hugged the child to herself tightly, allowing herself this small weakness, before settling her on her back.

"So, have you found anything?"

Vincent glanced her way. "Not really. There are a lot of bullets littering the ground. Clearly Yazoo was trying to get at something, mostly likely a person. It's impossible to tell how high he was aiming, so I can't say for sure if it was Denzel."

She stiffened. "I didn't even mention Denzel. And besides, why would he attack a child, anyway? What purpose does it serve to kill a ten year old boy?"

"They don't stay young and harmless forever. And clearly they've got no qualms with killing children. Loz was chasing after Marlene."

She threw a nasty look at the ground and opened her mouth to make a remark, but—

She gasped and fell to the ground instantly, getting on her hands and knees for a closer look. "Vincent!"

The cloaked man was by her side in an instant, not hesitating to run his hand through the thick puddle on the ground.

It was blood.

He took a moment to examine it more closely, before shaking his head. "It's certainly not Denzel's."

Tifa took his word for it and let out a sigh of relief.

"But… it doesn't quite make sense."

"What do you mean?"

Vincent sighed. "From where this blood is, and how it spattered, it obviously came from a very large man. Roughly the same stature as the large brother, himself, though he certainly wasn't wounded when I confronted him. And this person was shot, most likely by Yazoo…"

She nodded attentively. She had none of the training he had had, so she honestly couldn't tell any of this, but she believed in him completely.

"The person fell to the ground when shot, creating the puddle, but eventually got up and walked away, as indicated by the droplets of blood leading away. However, these droplets trail off within mere yards of the scene here. I can only assume the man either has Mako in his system to speed up the healing, or was given a potion."

"How does this relate to Denzel, though?"

Vincent shot her a pointed look, to which she squirmed and looked away. "On the surface, it doesn't. But think about it. If one of the two brothers was chasing Marlene, wouldn't the other naturally be chasing Denzel? Somewhere along the way, he found help and got away, though his rescuer was hurt. Whether or not they are still together, I cannot say."

She sighed. "I get it. So then, it's bad that a large man would potentially know where he is, because a large man would be hard to find."

He shook his head. "Not quite. It's better to know he's with someone with unusual stature, because they'd be _easier_ to locate than one out of hundreds of average people. The _problem_ comes in the fact that… do you remember anyone like that in Edge?"

She nibbled on her thumbnail. _Well, there's… who? No one I know and am close to. The only person I can think of at all is that Turk, and while Shinra is on the outskirts of Edge, I really doubt that they'd help anyone but themselves._

Finally, she shook her head. "I can't think of anyone at all."

Vincent nodded. "Exactly. It may be someone outside of Edge, in which case locating Denzel will be quite a bit harder." She started to protest, but he simply looked to the sky and said, "I called Cid earlier."

It was enough of a non-sequitur that she simply crossed her arms and waited.

He sighed. Not being one to talk, all the interaction was getting to him. Although generally conversations with Tifa were more pleasant than this. "He and Shera are on their way back as we speak. When they get here, they'll pick us up and we'll all head to Cosmo Canyon."

Tifa stared at him uncomprehendingly. "What are you saying? That as soon as help comes we're retreating? That I should just _leave_ Denzel, wherever he may be?"

The man shuffled uncomfortably under her grilling. "Well…"

"And what about Yuffie? She's around here somewhere, too. And Cloud can't have gotten too far yet…"

Vincent sighed and hesitantly placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, leveling her with his sturdy, calm gaze. "We'll pick up Yuffie, of course. And we'll scour the vicinity for both Denzel and Cloud… there's just no guarantee that we'll find them."

She stiffened and looked away, unable to meet his eyes. "…We'll find them. We have to."

* * *

Why had he left Denzel's party early? He knew how much the young boy had been looking forward to this, so why had he crushed his dreams by refusing to wholly take part in the fun?

Maybe he just didn't deserve to have fun.

_No… you're wrong, Cloud._ Aerith's voice – or was it Zack's? He could never keep track of these things anymore – whispered into his ear as a shadow of embrace wrapped around his torso, the aroma of flowers surrounding him.

Aerith, then.

He sighed and turned to lean into her, murmuring, "I'm always wrong, it seems."

She smiled and stepped back to point an accusatory finger in his face. "Now, now, don't be so down! Come on, Cloud, you know that you at least deserve to take a breather every now and then."

He averted his gaze incapable of answering to her chiding, playful words. "…I still haven't redeemed myself… for all my past mistakes. Letting Zack die, and then forgetting about him… letting _you_ die—"

"Okay, stop."

He shifted uncomfortably and attempted to stare a hole into the ground, but she'd have none of it. Grabbing his chin, she redirected his gaze right into her own chastising glare. "You know very well that I don't blame you. Zack doesn't blame you, either. You're the only one still ruminating over it, Cloud."

"But…"

Aerith shook her head, braid swinging slowly. "Stop looking for reasons to blame yourself. We want you to be happy; you _should_ be happy. You deserve it. No matter what you think, Cloud, you _do_, you really do."

The blonde sighed and took a step back, staring at the woman melancholically. "The Planet may be saved, but… I wish things had turned out differently."

She smiled and stepped closer to wrap him in another hug. "So do I, Cloud… so do I."

But then she stiffened, as she sensed – a presence, strong and evil. But moreover… _familiar._

_Could it be…?_

She needed to get back to the Lifestream, and quickly.

Cloud started as she began to pull away suddenly, grasping at her arms. "Aerith…? What's wrong?"

She stood on tiptoes to reach him, leaning in and… "I'm sorry, but I have to go."

And leaving him with the gentle brush of lips not really there; the overwhelming scent – _taste _– of flowers quite illusionary.

* * *

AN – Er… I like Cloud/Aerith, which I've made clearly obvious here. I'm not saying it'll happen for sure (she _is _dead, after all), but expect numerous romantic scenes between the two of them throughout the fic. As for where Zack fits in… I believe that yes, he and Aerith _did _love each other. But then he died, and she met Cloud, who, _at first_, she thought of as a sort of replacement for Zack. But, as the Gold Saucer date shows, she comes to truly love Cloud for who he is. So yeah. She and Zack are together in the Lifestream, but not _together_. He wants them to be happy.

Also, Cloud (and Aerith, and a secret someone else…) plays only a small part in my fic. I'll come back to him often, but he's basically the "B-plot" to everyone else's "A-plot", if that makes any sense. Hope that doesn't bother anyone too terribly.

And another thing, I uploaded this quickly right before school, so I haven't had time to look for grammar errors or just to fix it up nicer. Expect an edited version later.


	5. Fall Apart, Then Pick Up the Pieces

AN – Finally, I've made it to the end. This is the last chapter… before the time skip. Augh! And you know, I always figured there'd only be like one, _maybe_ two chapters until the story dove into the future. Now look at it. _Five chapters_. It took _five chapters _to get to the "beginning". But I digress. Enjoy~!

* * *

**Fall Apart, Then Pick Up the Pieces**

There he was – standing numbly, comatose, as if in a trance. In all honesty, he sort of was – his mind was elsewhere, longing after the feminine figure that had long since vanished.

The three Remnants donned eerily parallel grins as they drew closer to their quarry.

And as they surrounded him, Cloud Strife could only blink in shock. Hardened battle instinct – probably something Zack had granted him – had him pulling out his – not his, never his; even after all this time he still couldn't believe it had all been a _lie_ – Buster Sword and preparing for what would surely be one of the most difficult fights of his life.

* * *

_Stab. Throw. Spin, jab, roll. Dodge, kick, kill. Repeat without the flourish I once brandished._

Even seasoned Planet-saving, ass-kicking experts like Yuffie got worn out eventually. Panting, she raised a feeble arm and swung her shuriken like a blunt object, knocking out – and potentially even killing, if she hit hard enough – yet another wolf.

By now, she'd lost her inhibitions and was swearing up such a storm, she probably could've given Cid himself a run for his money. Because, when under pressure, she'd found that cussing helped, despite the fact that in all actuality all it did was waste energy.

Sighing heavily – and trying to catch her breath – she whisked out a few throwing stars, nailing one unlucky fiend in the brains.

_I've killed at least a hundred by now, right? Their numbers have definitely dwindled… hell, there's only six or seven left! I can do this! I can win! I can…_

She trembled slightly, vision blurring, and thought – _no. This is it. I didn't want it to end this way…_

The combination of intense heat, hours of fighting, and the sight-scent-_taste_ of putrid blood everywhere would be the end of her.

She caught herself before she fell forward into the wounded creatures' waiting jowls as a cool breeze swept by, accompanied by a large shadow passing overhead. Cid's airship. Thank her lucky stars.

She used the last of her energy to wave at the airship, hoping desperately that the pilot would see her.

* * *

Denzel felt numb – as if he had died and gone to the Lifestream, and was now watching over the shadow of himself.

The two men with him talked quietly amongst themselves but hardly ever addressed him personally. If it weren't for the fact that they occasionally glanced back at him he'd assume they didn't know he was there at all.

As if to spite him, Reno looked back and sneered, "Still alive, kid?"

He scowled and nodded mutely. He threw a dirty look at the ground before sighing in exasperation. "Where are we going, anyway?"

The redheaded man cast him a quick glance and shrugged, "A hiding place, where else? One of Shinra's many secret underground bases."

Denzel drew in a breath and looked, actually _looked _at the men in front of him and berated himself – how could he have missed those glowing green eyes? "You're with Shinra?" he muttered discontentedly.

Reno lazily flipped his trademark ponytail and said, "Ya got a problem with that? Or don't you remember who saved you?"

Rude remained silent, though one would get the feeling that he disapproved of his partner's words.

As much as he hated to admit it – and _why _did he? _Where _did this hatred come from? His parents had worked for Shinra, after all. _And look where that got them_… the back of his mind whispered treacherously – the man had a point. "It's fine," he lied, "Just… get me to safety. Please," he tacked on.

_I may not want to go with them, but I have to, if I want to live. I've gotta live, gotta… get stronger. I won't let those I love get hurt ever again.

* * *

_

"Any sign of them yet?"

Vincent sighed as his powerful hearing permitted him to know that Cid was grinding his teeth angrily.

Before the blonde man could harp on the woman for asking him _again _about their two missing companions, he unfolded his arms to straighten from his leaning corner and cross the floor, placing his non-clawed hand on Tifa's shoulder comfortingly.

Red eyes gazing into hers in what was hopefully a soothing look, Vincent murmured, "It's alright, Tifa. You need to calm down. Cid is doing the best that he can."

The brunette woman lowered her gaze and mumbled, "I know, I'm being ridiculous, and that I'm just causing everyone else to freak out, as well. It's just…" she trailed off to look forlornly out the window.

Her searching stare struck him hard, and he found himself squeezing her shoulder in as big a gesture of comfort as he could give. "You're not ridiculous; it's only natural for you to worry.

Tifa smiled softly and leaned her head on his hand – truthfully, the action made him a little uncomfortable, but he could tell she needed it, so he endured the discomfort silently. "I feel like I'm gonna go crazy from worrying."

Vincent reciprocated her small smile and offered, "Why don't you go check on Yuffie and Marlene? Surely it would help to focus on those here with us, rather than those not. Besides, Cid isn't leaving yet; you've got another two hours in which we could find Denzel and Cloud before you can start truly panicking."

She brightened considerably at that. "You're right. You're right! We'll definitely find them… we have to. Thank you, Vincent." She leaned forward and, very briefly, enveloped him in a hug, smiling at his stunned intake of breath and automatic stiffening. She drew back before he could react, and headed off towards the cabins.

Vincent was left with the frighteningly foreign feeling of something akin to passion of a romantic variety – _lust_, Chaos corrected with a feral growl.

He knitted his brow at this troubling development and went to stand at the window, searching vainly for the two that mattered most to the woman.

* * *

He woke up lying in Aerith's lap, her hands combing through his hair.

He blinked rapidly, startled, and resisted the instinctual urge to bolt up, not wanting to disturb her. However, she felt his body tense up and looked down at him, a mysterious smile on her face.

"Hello, Cloud. Have a nice nap?"

The blonde disentangled himself from her to pin her with a questioning gaze. "Aerith, how – what happened? The last thing I remember, I was fighting Kadaj and his brothers…"

The Ancient bit her lip and hedged, "You're tough, Cloud, but not immortal. As powerful as you are, that was one battle you would've lost. Three clones of Sephiroth – none as strong as the original, but all of them are still quite dangerous – is just too much. They were hurting you so much, and going in for the kill, and… I intervened and brought you here. Are you angry?"

The old him would've been. He would've said, _I had things under control; you shouldn't have interfered._ The current him, the "new" him was happy – maybe it was Zack's influence? He was certainly the kind of guy to never turn down help, so long as no danger came to the person assisting him. Cloud shook his head. "Nah. I'm happy to be alive, believe it or not. Happy to be here, with you…"

_Where __**is **__"here", anyway? _Looking around, he gasped sharply. "Here" turned out to be, of all places…

"Th-this is—"

She clasped her hands together and affirmed, "Yes. This is where I was murdered. The Forgotten City."

He flinched at her matter-of-fact tone, causing her to huff and put her hands on her hips. "Oh, come now! I've accepted what happened, Cloud. Why can't you?"

Staring holes into his feet, he started, "Because—"

"Never mind, it's not an answer that I'm going to like," she interjected. "Right?"

He chuckled softly at her manner; only she could make bossy a cute trait.

She laughed along with him, and for a few minutes, everything was just perfect. She wasn't dead, he wasn't utterly fucked in the head, and she hadn't been murdered before his eyes. They were just another couple blissfully in love.

All too soon, though, she was embracing him, murmuring, "I have to go."

He cherished her touch, mumbled despondently, "So soon?"

She gave a sad smile, trailed a hand down his arm, and stated gloomily, "Sorry."

And once again, she vanished, leaving behind an aftertaste of flowers in the air. Cloud sighed unhappily, but knew not to dwell over it too long – look what had happened last time.

From here, he had to options: Go to the freezing cold Icicle Inn, or head to Bone Village. The blonde pretended to deliberate for about thirty seconds and then set out.

_Bone Village it is.

* * *

_

Tifa drew her knees up to her chest and stared miserably at the door that Shera was trying so hard to get into. The other woman tried knocking once more to no avail, and cried, "Please, Tifa! Let me in!"

A more persistent, rougher series of knocks came from Yuffie, who had woken up about twenty minutes ago – at roughly the same time Cid called it quits and _abandoned _Denzel and Cloud.

The brunette bit furiously at her lip and fought back tears; she would _not_ cry, not now, _dammit_.

More bangs at the door. "Let me in before I pick the lock, Teef! I'm serious, I'll do it! Don't let it come to that!"

She took a few steadying breaths and shouted, "Be quiet, the both of you! You'll wake up Marlene…"

Her plea worked for about half a minute before Yuffie came back with, "Maybe we should! I bet you'd let her in, wouldn't you?"

Tifa gripped her legs even tighter and beseeched, "Please, just go away…"

A quiet bass tone on the other side of the door caught her ear, and she winced. For even Vincent to come and attempt to offer commiseration, it must be bad. _Maybe… maybe I should go out and tell them I'm okay – it'd be a lie, but at least it might calm them down._

One single, soft knock brought her back. "Tifa."

She caught the sound of shuffling feet – he'd managed to send the two girls away, and for that, she was grateful. Surely the least she could do was let him in.

She opened the door without a word, and then closed it behind the man, locking it silently – she didn't want Yuffie taking advantage of the situation and barging in.

She crossed by him and sat on the bed, placing her hands in her lap. "…You can sit down, if you'd like."

He shook his head slowly, crimson eyes trained on her. "…I'm fine."

Tifa fidgeted uncomfortably, keeping her own gaze firmly on her hands, which trembled ever so slightly. She gulped mutely and began, "I'm sorry… for worrying you and the others. I'll be fine, really. I just… need to get over the initial shock, is all. So you don't need to be here, if you don't want to be."

"Is that so."

His monotonous tone caused her to look up at him. Nothing on his face betrayed it, but somehow, she knew, without a doubt, that he was thinking, _You're lying_.

He wasn't at all surprised when she answered his unspoken accusation with a shaky smile. "You're right – I am lying. I… I'm scared. And upset. And what if I never see them again, or what if we find them dead, or…"

Vincent hesitantly took a seat beside her on the bed – she needed someone to lean on, and as uneasy he was with the idea of it being him, he knew it was necessary. He bit back the urge to stand right back up when he felt Chaos stirring.

Tifa took the unsaid invitation gratefully, leaning against his side, her head on his shoulder. "…Thank you again, Vincent. You've been really kind to me in these times of distress lately. I'm not sure what I'd do without you."

He nodded wordlessly, a guarded expression in his eyes. His mind was elsewhere, battling inner demons.

And Tifa's body took advantage of his distraction. Her heart fractured, her common sense in shambles, she straightened up and kissed him on autopilot.

Immediately, he had her pinned with just a gaze, a wild, somewhat animalistic expression that both excited and terrified her. Voice gravelly, he demanded, "Don't, Tifa."

"I-I don't know what came over me, Vincent! I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to…" She trailed off as she realized that, despite her best efforts, she was leaning in again. Her apologies belied the desire that had come out of nowhere and hit her like a truck.

It had been a long time. A very, _very _long time. One awkward, unsatisfying first time with her love, whose heart wasn't in it. She was twenty-four years old, and even if her mind and heart resisted, her body knew what it wanted.

"I'm sorry…" she whispered, face pressing closer and closer to his own, "…it's just… I need…"

Vincent gripped her shoulders, stopped her from coming closer. "I can't do this, Tifa. Please stop."

The pressure was intense – Chaos fighting for it on the inside, Tifa fighting for it on the outside. Vincent wasn't sure he had it in him to resist them both. He _should _choose to defy Tifa and face the consequences of Chaos' rage, but…

Some small part buried deep within is in agreement with the demon.

It's been four years for Tifa, but it's been decades for him. A few girls that didn't matter in the long run, and one perfect, blissful night with Lucrecia before she ran from him straight into Hojo's arms.

Plus, all four beasts – even the three usually silent – were in agreement, practically ordering him to devour her… metaphorically, he hoped.

His control was fraying by the minute, and about the snap. He gritted his teeth and consented to Chaos, _Fine, I'll do what you want. But I'm still in control – if this is going to happen, I'll be doing it my way._

_I don't do compromises, _the demon growled.

_You will this time, or I will use the last of my restraint to run from this room and throw myself from the ship. It might be enough to kill me, and if I die, you die._

Chaos gave a furious snarl, but remained quiet. Vincent took it as a yes.

"We'll regret this in the future," he warned Tifa.

She shook her head, eyes glazed over. "I don't care about then, I care about now, and right now I need… _you_."

He let out a guttural rumble deep in his throat, and descended upon her.

They wouldn't leave the room until late the following day, when Cid finally arrived at Cosmo Canyon.

* * *

Again, he awoke in her lap.

He really had to stop doing this.

Then again, maybe not. Waking up in the Cetra's company was quite a pleasure, after all.

Blue eyes fluttering open, he murmured, "Aerith? What happened this time?"

A sharp gasp from the woman holding him, and his vision cleared, allowing him to realize—

"I-I'm sorry, but I'm not her…"

Cloud sat up quickly and backed away to put some distance in between them, taking in the woman's warm brown eyes and mahogany waves without a word.

He glared at her accusingly, as if to say, _Who are you and why do you think you can get away with holding me when you're not Aerith?_ Then, he looked away, realizing how childish such a line of reasoning was.

"Um…" the young woman ventured, "…you passed out here in the forest. I found you not too long ago, and I've been trying to heal the worst of your injuries. Unfortunately, I'm not the best with green Materia… I'd really like to take you back to the village. You look like you need some rest, and maybe—"

"Who are you?" he cut in, somewhat amused and reassured by her nervous, awkward behavior - something in her eyes made him wary, though.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, "How rude of me! I didn't introduce myself, now did I?" She gave him a hesitant smile and offered her hand. "I'm Cissnei."

* * *

"Well, kid, here we are. Your new home."

It was dark, creaky, and he felt like he was choking on dust every time he took a breath. Denzel was not impressed.

Reno took in the boy's expression and grinned. "Yeah, I know, the décor leaves a bit to be impressed, but hey, as soon as Tseng finds the control room, at least we'll get some light in here!"

The boy frowned at the redhead's jovial tone and instead focused his next question towards the woman who had joined them about an hour ago. "Miss Elena, I don't understand. How can you expect people to live _here_? There's no food, or beds, or bathrooms. There's no anything!"

The blonde smiled and ruffled the kid's hair, much to his annoyance. "Well, Reno got a bit ahead of himself. This is just the _entrance_. It's a tunnel leading to the base itself, where there _are _facilities like you mentioned."

"Oh." He stayed quiet and processed this while she and the man bickered – something about her being a big softie and did Tseng know she loved kids, and shut up asshole my love life is none of your business and I bet you're already setting a horrible example for this young boy to follow.

"Language," the big man, Rude, reprimanded.

The woman turned bright red, and Reno laughed, "Oh, Laney, now look who's setting a bad example~!"

"Shut up, Reno!"

Denzel, in an effort to be the mature one in a group of childish adults, shrugged and muttered, "It's fine, cussing doesn't bother me. One of the guys I know is _much _worse about it, anyway."

The redhead quirked an eyebrow, intrigued. "That so? What's your name, anyway, kid?"

Elena spluttered, "_What_? He's been in your company for almost a whole day now, and you haven't even bothered to learn his _name_ yet?"

"My name is Denzel," he said quickly, trying to prevent a fight.

Reno stopped and took a closer look at the boy. "Denzel, huh? That name sounds familiar…"

"The boy that Tifa took in," Rude rumbled.

The man's eyebrows rose once more, and he smirked. "_Tifa_, huh? I guess you'd know all about that, wouldn't you, Rude?"

The large man remained silent, though Denzel got the feeling that he was glaring at the smaller man through his sunglasses – come to think of it, why was the man _still _wearing them? It was _dark _in here! – and Elena rolled her eyes.

"You guys know Tifa?"

Reno nodded. "Sure do. What's it to ya?"

Denzel hated to ask, he really did, but… "It's just… I got separated from her during all the chaos. Do you know where she is?"

He immediately garnered the blonde woman's sympathy, as she looked like she wanted to hug him. Reno, on the other hand, waved a hand in a blasé manner. "'Fraid not. Tough luck, kid."

Elena scowled. "_Reno_!"

The man shrugged, but then turned to face the boy, deadly serious. "You wanna find her, kid?"

Denzel didn't like the analyzing look on the redhead's face, but he nodded instantly. "I do. More than anything, I want to find her and Marlene. I…" he trailed off, embarrassed to admit he'd been _this _close to saying he wanted to protect them. These three wouldn't understand. All they'd do is laugh.

Reno smirked, "It's a dangerous world out there, squirt. A little pipsqueak like you wouldn't last till dinner time. You wanna find your girls, you gotta get stronger. How's that sound to you?"

At this point, the boy started seeing the three before him in a new light. Sure, they were Shinra, but they were also Turks – incredibly powerful and savvy, and as such, the perfect mentors. "Yes!" he exclaimed, "That sounds great! I want to be strong, _really _strong! Would you please train me?"

The redhead smiled triumphantly. "Sure. But you'd have to keep up. If you can't handle what we dish out at ya, you're not worth our time."

This was when Elena decided she'd had enough, and intervened, pulling the man away to have a private chat. "Reno! What are you _thinking_? This is going against Tseng's orders! We're supposed to protect civilians, not torture them!"

He gave her a condescending look, causing her to ball her fists – so, he backed off just a tad. "Relax, Laney. I know what I'm doing. In case you haven't noticed, over the past decade, the Turks' numbers have dwindled. We used to be at least twenty strong, and now we're down to, well, just us four. We need new recruits, and badly, and this kid's got the will, so why not give him a try, huh?"

She stared at him long and hard, tried to see if he was lying, but finally gave in. "If you push him too far, to a point where he can't fully recover…"

He just smiled and gave her a thumbs up, which really did nothing to reassure her, before turning to face the anxious young boy. "Okay, kid… or, uh, Denzel. This is your last chance to back out, because if you're gonna be one of us, that includes getting injected with our friendly neighborhood supply of Mako, and to a newbie, it _will _be hell. Still wanna do this?"

_This is the only way. Tifa, Marlene… wait for me. I'll come back one day, and I'll be strong enough to take care of you._

Denzel breathed in a slow, calming breath, and prepared for his life to change forever. "Yes…" he said, bristling with anticipation, "…let's do this!"

* * *

AN – I think this was the longest chapter yet. To be honest, there's still stuff I want to add, but I'm unwilling to do yet another chapter before finally skipping to the "beginning", nor do I want to stretch this chapter out any longer, so… expect flashbacks from time to time. _Especially _when it comes to Cloud and Cissnei (btw, I bet none of you saw her coming, did you? ;D). Anyway, I'm happy to be done with what I consider to be the longest prologue ever. Reviews would be immensely appreciated. Like seriously.


	6. Battle!

**AN –** Hey, whadaya know? I finally, _finally_ made it to the time skip! YAY! Hopefully from hereon I shouldn't struggle quite as much when it comes to writing. But that's yet to be seen, so… Enjoy~! Oh, and, uh, Happy New Year.

**Raven** – I know that I handled the Vincent and Tifa badly, but truthfully what I've got in mind for them is complicated and hard to express. I didn't want to give off the impression of them throwing themselves at each other just because they were desperate. Tifa was doing it more out of the need for comfort; she wanted him there for her platonically, but other desires got in the way, and her mind twisted it into a different sort of comfort in the hopes that it would still help, so she struggled to resist. Vincent was also very against the idea, but he _was _attracted to her, and he feared that if he resisted too hard, he might hurt Tifa, who was in such a fractured state that he couldn't bear to do so. Plus, he needed to make a quick decision, because the more she distracted him, the more chance Chaos had at taking over, and Vincent knew that, while he could hold back, Chaos wouldn't even try. He didn't want to make the decision that he did, but under the time limit he was given he felt that it was the best choice he could make in that it wouldn't hurt Tifa as much, and that he could keep Chaos at bay. And I promise, as soon as I find a way to write that out, I will edit that disastrous scene in the previous chapter. And Marlene was not in that room, no. She was in another room in the same hallway (hence Yuffie suggesting that they wake her up, because Tifa might let her in).

Much like Tifa and Vincent, I'm still struggling to write Cloud's part in this story. Story-wise, I know what I'm doing with him, the problem is getting it written down well. So far all he's done is fight with the Remnants (which I don't show, because I don't believe in my talent to properly write battles yet) and pass out a lot to wake up in someone's arms. With the Remnants, he was basically getting beaten (slowly, but surely), and Aerith was unable to watch, so she interfered, spiriting him away. Then, he attempted to go to Bone Village, and he just passed out from sheer exhaustion (injured, hungry, etc.), and Cissnei found him. Much like the situation above, if I can figure out a better way to put things, I'll go back and rewrite his parts.

And I've never used a beta before, so I'm a little unsure of how the process works. If someone comes along and offers to help, I'd probably accept, but… Anyway, sorry my response is so long, and thank you very much for reviewing! It means a lot to me, really. ^_^

* * *

**Battle!**

Today, he was eighteen. Officially an adult, yet not old enough to drink – not that Reno wouldn't drag him out to Kalm to go drinking, anyway.

Once upon a time, Denzel would've considered this significant.

But not now. Not now that he'd spent his adolescent years growing up underground. Not now that he'd been injected by Mako a few times and felt the aftereffects – both good and bad. Not when the bright, shiny, idealistic world he'd used to live in had been turned into a grim, dangerous one.

Besides, it's not like any of the other Turks knew it was his birthday, anyway. Over the years, he'd only given them enough information to narrow it down to the correct month. He was pretty sure that right now they thought his birthday to be four days from now.

As such, they had no qualms about sending him out in the field today, not knowing of its importance.

"Yo, Denzel. See that?" Beside him, Reno was crouched down behind a large rock to give coverage, pointing miles off to a building on the off skirts of Edge.

Playing along, Denzel moved his sharp, piercing gaze upwards, his Mako-infused eyes seeing far into the distance. "The Shinra building. You've pointed it out to me before, you know."

The redhead waved a hand in dismissal. "Have I? Eh, whatever. Point is, President Rufus – _Jenova_ – is _right _there, in that building, as far as we know. So close, and we can't do a damn thing. Like—"

"You haven't even tried," Denzel cut in.

Reno responded with a light slap on the other man's back. "Five Turks and a bunch of dudes with guns – can't even use 'em properly, either – ain't gonna cut it against her and her wonder kids."

The younger man went to take another stab at the redhead, but both froze over as a strange feeling washed over them. Dropping down to be further obscured by the boulder, he whispered, "Feel that?"

Reno gave him a pointed look, eyes glowing dangerously. "How the hell could I _not_?" He slowly raised himself up to peer over the stone as inconspicuously as possible, before settling back down, a frown on his face. "Strange. It _feels_ like someone's here, but I don't see them."

Denzel shrugged. "Maybe they're well hidden. There's plenty of terrain around here for cover, in case you haven't noticed."

The other man shook his head and went up for another look, and by the way his eyes widened, he clearly saw something this time. He reached down and slapped the sandy haired man's arm a few times and motioned for him to come up, too. Denzel did so hesitantly, and inhaled sharply at what he saw.

Not one hundred meters away, the very air itself was distorting, and dissolving, and revealing…

"Or maybe…" Reno drawled, watching as a figure slowly appeared as if from thin air, "…they're using Materia. Take note of this person, Denz; see what we can figure out without engaging them in combat."

The air cleared, showing the person to be a woman. Denzel went right to work, ignoring his partner's low whistle of appreciation, and noted, "Female, roughly a height of—"

"Not just female. _Babe_," Reno interrupted.

Shooting the redhead a critical look, the sandy haired man cleared his throat quietly and murmured, "Can I continue?"

"Right, right… height roughly 5'5'', build slender… you see a weapon?"

"There's a shuriken hooked to her side… and what appears to be a pouch containing _something _on the other side."

Ignoring the tidbit about the pouch, Reno questioned his partner, "The shuriken, plus her fair complexion and dark hair, implies…?"

Denzel sent another sharp look over. "I've been taught well enough over the years to recognize a Wutaian when I see one."

Reno gave a short nod. "Right… look at her upper body." At the dubious look he felt boring into the side of his head, he rolled his eyes and added, "Her _arms_. Come on, Denz; give me a little credit here."

Chastised, the other man mumbled a quick, "Sorry," and focused on her upper arms. "…That's a lot of Materia… I thought you could only have one armlet on at a time?"

The redhead shrugged. "That's generally the case. It takes extra energy to have the extra materia, and typically between your weapon and one armlet you've got enough, anyway, so most people don't bother. The fact that she does means…?"

"I feel like I'm being quizzed," Denzel huffed.

"You kinda are. We wanna make sure that everything we've drilled into you over the years – not just the strength, but the information, as well – isn't going to waste," Reno said.

"Ugh… all that Materia implies that her forte is magic, and the weapon is only there if she needs it. Happy?"

The redhead smiled. "Sure! Now I don't know about you, but I think it's about time we took some action, don't ya think? So Denzel…"

The man in question raised a hand exasperatedly and interjected, "Wait, let me guess: I passed my test of intellect, so now it's time for the test of strength, am I right?"

"Yup! And let me tell you, I'm a pretty harsh examiner. If you don't win, you fail." The man's beam could only be described as evil.

Denzel withdrew his daggers – taking the time to swap out some materia so as to produce an effect that wouldn't kill the girl when he landed a hit – and grinned in anticipation. "Well, I guess I'd better win, then."

Reno nodded in agreement. "Exactly. Time to show this chick what you're made of!"

He didn't need to be told twice.

* * *

"_Okay, kid, your first opponent will be… Elena!"_

_The blonde in question looked over at her fellow Turk as if he'd grown two heads. "Why me? Reno, you know he can't handle anything I dish out!"_

_The redhead shrugged. "You're the one with the most compassion here, Laney. That means that you'll be more likely to hold back, and as his first real experience with combat, the kid'll __**need**__ that."_

_Denzel shook his head and exclaimed, "Wait! There's no point to this! She's super powerful because of Mako, right? You haven't given me any yet, so I won't stand a __**chance**__! Why are you doing this?"_

_Reno scowled, and the look chilled the boy to the bones. "Look kid, I've told you already that amateurs like you can't handle Mako, okay? You've gotta toughen up __**before**__ we inject you, so you can withstand what it does to you! If we gave you some now, you'd __**die**__, got it?"_

_Both Rude and Elena shot the other man warning looks, and he backed off, lighting a cigarette and turning his eyes skyward._

_Denzel was highly unnerved by the man's words, and Elena eyed him nervously. "You haven't been given the Mako yet, you know. If you want, you could still back out. It's not too late…"_

I have no idea what this woman is capable of_, he told himself. _She may not look like much, but something tells me she could kill me in an instant if she wanted… and I'm not sure I can handle that. _"Maybe… maybe I __**should**__…"_

But what about Tifa? What about Marlene? If you back out now, you'll never be able to protect them. You'll remain weak.

"…_No. No! I've gotta do this," he insisted, startling the three adults with his determination._

_Reno smiled. "Now that's what I like to hear, kid – no, Denzel. Now it's time to back up those words with action. The goal here is just to avoid her as long as possible, okay? It wouldn't do any good to try and attack, cause nothing you could possibly do at your level would leave a single scratch on her. So just try and survive. Show us what you're made of."_

_The boy gave a small smile and nodded. "Right."_

The goal is just to survive. After all I've been through already, this should be easy. I can do this.

* * *

She'd been having a bad day.

First, she woke up way too friggin' early for her liking to the unmistakable, disgusting sound of _birth_. She was happy that the cubs – err, pups, or… whatever they were – had finally been born, but seriously, she just _did not_ need to hear that, thank-you-very-much.

Then, at the meeting to decide who was doing what, she'd literally just been _handed _the short end of the stick. The others had gotten to argue over what they wanted to do, but _no, _she had to be the one to come all this way to sit here and babysit a building for a couple hours.

_I hate reconnaissance, _she internally whined_. Nothing ever happens… I mean, it's not like under my scrutiny, the building's just gonna implode, or something!_

…_Though that would be pretty awesome._

Then, after her third run in with unremarkable monsters, she'd gotten sloppy on the kill and ended up with monster guts on her favorite pair of boots. _White _boots, at that.

And now a couple of idiots – two, both male, her sensory Materia informed her – wanted to tangle with her.

She toyed with the idea that they might actually provide a decent challenge, and therefore _improve _her day somewhat, but the odds of that happening were slim.

Her initiative Materia informed her that someone was heading her way, and of course the urge to strike first came with it. But she wanted to know what she was dealing with first.

Touching her left armlet, she sent a Sleep spell at the man, frowning when her sensory Materia showed no change in his status. _Let's try this, then… _Silence. Minimize. Poison. Confuse.

Nothing was working on him, though surely he could at least feel that _something _was happening to him, because he'd slowed down and had yet to reach her.

_An enemy that is immune to status effects… must have Mako in his system, so that means…_

"Of course. I should've known that the Turks wouldn't just disappear for good."

She turned to face the man – no, he looks like a teenage boy, sixteen at the oldest – and smiled at his shocked expression.

Stopping, he inquired, "…You know what I am?"

He wasn't a Turk that she recognized – there must have been more than she originally thought – but something bugged her about him nonetheless.

She sent him a cheerful grin. "Of course! You're with Shinra. I _hate _Shinra, so you're in trouble."

He got into a defensive position, placing his daggers out – she noted with interest that they currently seemed to crackle with electricity, reminding her distantly of the weapon of another Turk.

_Note to self: don't let his weapons touch you, or you'll get a nasty shock._

Drawing her own shuriken, she exclaimed loudly, "Oh, and your partner might as well come out, too, cause you can't beat me on your own!"

She was a bit perturbed when her sensory Materia showed no change in said partner's location, and even more so when the one in front of her charged at her with unexpected speed.

He smiled dangerously, too close for her liking, and murmured, "Cocky, aren't you?"

Up close, it struck her even more that she felt like she was missing something about the boy, but she squashed the feeling and shoved it to the corners of her mind to pull out and think on later. She had a battle to focus on.

Thrusting her shuriken out, she channeled lightning from her right armlet into the weapon so as to counteract his own electricity, smirking as he saw _just what_ was equipped in her weapon besides yellow materia.

"Maybe so," she conceded, "…but I've got the skill to back it up!" She took advantage of his total shock to jump away – she was still plenty efficient up close, but she worked best in range.

"_Three? _Three summons?" The poor kid looked like he was about the have a coronary.

"Oh, don't worry," she said with acid sweetness, "I won't bother using those babies on small fry like you."

And that was true, but it was also the moment she started fighting seriously, starting by throwing out high leveled Fire – he dodged to the left – followed by Bolt – he jumped back just in time, though he looked a tad singed – and finally Ice to freeze him in his place – this actually worked, at least somewhat. He tried to jump up to avoid it, but it managed to catch and freeze over one of his feet, so he was stuck.

She was shocked by how quickly he escaped, though. She'd assumed he wouldn't think to shatter the ice with one of his daggers due to the shock it would give, but he clearly had a good grasp on how to use both his weapons _and _Materia, as he quickly took the lightning Materia out of the weapon slot and cut himself out before reapplying the electricity to his weapon.

She smiled in approval. "Not bad." _Proof that Turks are at least smarter than most – as simple as it is to escape using such a method, most people never think of it._

_This has actually been kind of fun… but I think it's time to end it.

* * *

_

This chick was _way _too capable to be just any old Wutaian doing recon. She was working with someone – someone powerful.

Her attitude was really starting to get to him, though – not just because he couldn't shut her up, but because the sensation of it all was _familiar._ He hadn't had such a sensation in a _long _time, and that was throwing him off his game.

"Okay, dude, I've had enough fun. Try escaping this combination!"

That was the most warning he got before the ground started sinking and collapsing beneath his feet. "Ah!" He struggled to maintain his balance and not fall into the growing chasm, and tried to climb out – he could jump, but he had this weird feeling that it was what she wanted him to do.

Not that climbing out at his slow pace was much better. He was practically a sitting duck.

Finally, he managed to struggle his way out of the pit onto stable land – for now, anyway.

Of course, it was steady for all of ten seconds, before it began caving inward, as well. _Dammit! She really must want me to jump. But why…? Either way, I've gotta do something to distract her._

Despite how unsteady he was, he chucked one of his daggers at the girl, and it flew straight, fast, and right at her, promising electrocution – and maybe death, if it hit her in the head.

She shrieked and cartwheeled away, but it still skimmed her right arm, causing her to bite out another yell – this one clearly pained.

He took advantage of her distraction to jump safely out of the hole, and when she noticed, she shouted something angrily in her native tongue. Denzel figured by her face and tone that it was none too nice.

Chancing a glance at the stone Reno still hid safely behind, he both beseeched and cursed his partner. _Come on, man! Test or not, you know I can't handle her on my own! At least call for backup or something! Don't just sit there! Lazy asshole…_

Recovering from the shock, the woman snarled, "That hurt! You'll pay for that!"

_No tolerance for pain, apparently. That's a weakness I can use. Maybe she doesn't respond well to taunts… _"Aw, did that hurt? I'm _so sorry_, sweetie. Want me to kiss it and make it better?"

Truth be told, he didn't feel exactly comfortable saying such things, especially to a dangerous opponent. That was more Reno's shtick. But if it gave him an edge, he'd take it.

And the look on her face was priceless. First, her jaw dropped at the insult, and then she floundered for the right comeback, looking like a fish, and finally she settled on turning bright red, pissed beyond reason.

_Please tell me she's not one of those fighters that get stronger when she's mad. __**Please.**_

His question was answered a moment later when she simultaneously threw out her Fire-Bolt-Ice combination _and _had everything within five feet of him sinking.

_**Of course**__ she is. Dammit._

It was pretty difficult to dodge the sheer amount of magic being thrown at him. He had to constantly run left and right to avoid bursts of fire and lightning, attack the ice before it froze him in place – he started using his own Fire magic to counter it, but realized quickly it made him sink faster, because the it made the ground wet. He had less than a minute before he'd sink at this rate – then he'd literally be six feet under.

He _knew _she wanted him to jump. He didn't know _why_, but he was afraid he was about to find out, because there was literally no other way to avoid all this than to give into the temptation and jump to safety.

And so, cursing himself, he put as much power into his legs as possible, and leaped high into the air, hopeful that whatever trick she had up her sleeve would be impossible to perform on him at such a height.

He knew he was doomed when her face lit up, though. "Got ya!"

And he was suddenly falling – he'd meant to land, of course, but hadn't intended to come crashing down, and that was what was happening against his will. Realization struck moments before the ground did, and again, he cursed himself. _It had to be gravity Materia, didn't it?_

And then Denzel was kissing the ground, his entire body aching from the crash landing.

To add insult to injury, she threw four small throwing stars at him and pinned him down easily. _At least I know what's in the pouch now._

The woman approached slowly, glaring down at him. He almost expect her to call down another Bolt on him, or stab him with her shuriken, but no, she did something much different – and much more embarrassing.

She stomped on his chest. Only once, and not with her full power, certainly not enough to kill him, but he had a feeling that he'd have a nasty bruise there in the morning. "That's for thinking you can insult me! _Me!_ I wiped the floor with you, and you think you can get away with down talking _me_, the greatest ninja _ever_? I don't think so!"

He coughed and remained still, dazed. And yet… _Greatest ninja ever…? Who does that remind me of, again…?_

"…Hey, you're not gonna die, are you? I mean, I hate Shinra, and all, but that doesn't mean I wanted to kill you. Come on, look at me!" That slightly panicked, bossy tone… had he heard it before?

His vision refocused as a warm, soothing sensation took over. He could feel the pain going away. _Is she… healing me?_

"Stupid…" he choked out, "…think I'm so weak as to die from that?"

Finally turning his head to look at her, he saw clear relief that he was okay, and a smile playing across her lips. _That mischievous expression… why does this woman seem so familiar?_

Her dark gray eyes – almost black – took in his face with the same sort of confusion that he felt, but she shook her head, as if banishing whatever she was thinking. "_That_ was pretty intense. I've seen greater men than you fall to my awesome power, ya know. You did pretty good! Lasted over three minutes even when I was going all out!"

He rolled his eyes, noting that Reno was quietly sneaking up behind the woman. _Hope he thought to bring backup, because he may still be better than me, but personally I'm betting she can kick his ass. Although… maybe she's not all that bad, and is willing to talk things out…_

"It's nice to know I lasted such a great length of time," he muttered sarcastically.

* * *

_It was a stare off for about five seconds, and then she charged. Denzel fought the urge to stand there like a deer in the headlights and ran quickly to the left, with her hot on his heels._

_She was surprisingly fast – when he was told she was a fist fighter, he'd assumed she'd be like Rude: slow, but powerful. He was painfully shocked to learn her method was not unlike Tifa's. She was fast **and** powerful – a very dangerous combination that didn't spell a pretty end for him._

_He felt more than heard and saw her leap over him to land directly in his path. Was that a punch promising pain coming his way?_

_Why yes, yes it was._

_With no time to dodge, he tried vainly to block it, throwing his arms out to cover his face. He succeeded in protecting his face from the blow, but immediately felt like his arms had been punched clean off, and actually fell backwards on the floor from the force of the attack._

"_And that's it. Thirty seconds. Not bad for your first try. But I forgot to tell you – __**never**__ try and block Laney's punches, kid. You just can't do it without getting the shit beaten out of ya, so dodge."_

_From where he was lying on the floor in severe pain, Denzel glared over at the redhead. "That would've been really nice to know __**before**__ she punched me."_

_Reno shrugged. "Yeah, well, now you know. So deal with it."

* * *

_

If this guy's partner didn't think she could sense him, then he was in for a rather rude awakening. Especially considering it meant that he was tearing her away from the one she was tending to – the more she looked at and talked to him, the greater the persistence of '_I know him_' became.

She carefully extracted a few throwing stars from her pouch – hopefully her temporary patient didn't notice, because she couldn't trust him not to rat her out – and sprung quickly, turning and throwing the stars quickly, making the man jump out of the way of some, batting the others off with his…

_Wait. Red hair. Ponytail. That weapon…_

"I know you!" she shouted, pointing for dramatic effect.

Reno ground to a halt to reevaluate her, letting his eyes linger in certain places too long for her liking. "Eh? I don't think so, babe. I'd recognize a woman like you."

She recoiled as if struck. "Oh, gross! Are you _hitting on me_? No, just no! Don't do it!"

The redhead gave her a sharp look. "Well then, princess, who the hell are you?"

She glared, and snapped, "If you don't remember, I'm not telling you! Just know that I'm not here to fight, okay?"

He shot her a suspicious look, and lowered his weapon – he made a point to keep it out, though.

_Stupid redheaded Turk. How dare he forget me? I'm the greatest ninja ever! The Single White Rose of Wutai!_

She shoved her angry thoughts away and turned back to the boy who, with some difficulty, had managed to sit up, and seemed to watch the interaction between her and his partner with interest.

_This guy… the fact that I find him so familiar just isn't normal. It's not. I've __**got**__ to know him. But who do I know that has ever looked even remotely similar to him, and this young…?_

_Blue eyes, tanned complexion, shaggy hair the color of sand… There's only one person I've __**ever**__ known with that hair color!_

She grabbed his shoulders and shook him, locking gazes. "Hey, you! Is that your natural hair color?"

He looked at her like she was crazy. "What?"

"Is that your natural hair color? Yes or no? It's a simple question!" she shouted, excitement brewing.

He looked at her wide-eyed, and then chanced a look at Reno, as if his partner could explain the woman's actions. "F-fine, yes! This is the hair color I've had all my life!"

She smiled widely at that, and demanded, "How old are you?" _Eighteen. He'd be eighteen today._

The boy hesitated, shooting another uncertain look at his partner, before admitting, "Eighteen."

Her grip on his shoulders turned painful, and she seemed to be clawing some sort of truth out of his very soul. "Since when?"

"What?"

"Your birthday!" she insisted, "Since when have you been eighteen?"

_Please say today. Please, __**god**__, say today!

* * *

_

Denzel was panicked. This woman seemed to be on the verge of tears – happy? Sad? He couldn't tell, but it was disconcerting nonetheless. And now she wanted to know his birthday.

And wasn't that just the million gil question.

If he answered her, then it would be out – she'd be the first person to know since… since back then, before this all started. This would be giving the secret out not only to her, but to Reno, too, and then all the Turks would know.

It's not like it was necessarily a bad thing for them to know his birthday – he just felt that he should only celebrate it with _them_. Tifa, and Marlene, and… all the people he hadn't seen in eight years.

This girl… the way she acted was _so familiar_, and she seemed to have the same feeling, if her desperate bid for more information was any indication. _The more I think about it… the more she reminds me of…_

He really shouldn't have, be he told her.

"Today," he ventured nervously, "I'm eighteen… today."

And that was when she literally just seemed to fly into his unsuspecting arms, locking him in a chokehold through what was probably the most painful hug he'd ever received in his life.

"You're… choking me…" he wheezed, "…let me go… Yuffie!"

Arms constricting on his neck, nails digging into his shoulders, eyes leaking hot tears – she'd later deny having them – and mouth spewing words a mile a minute – "DenzelDenzelDenzelDenzel; you're alive, you're okay, thought you were dead; Tifa and Marlene…" – Yuffie Kisaragi sat before him.

* * *

AN – Not that any of you didn't realize that _way _earlier on… this chapter's gonna be long. Hopefully, though, it's okay. I know that I pretty much just picked up and didn't explain much, but I intend to do that in chapters to come. You'll learn all about what's going on and what's transpired in the eight years that have passed, don't worry. As always, reviews would be _immensely _appreciated! And, uh, if anyone wants to volunteer, I think maybe I should get a beta for this, so… Please?

Oh, and if you're confused about what Denzel did with the Materia, he had Lightning paired with Elemental, giving his weapon that element, so to not shock himself when cutting himself free, he temporarily took out the Lightning Materia, returning his weapons to normal.


	7. Confrontation

**AN –** Hey all! Not much to say here, except sorry if you think Yuffie's characterization is a little off, both in this chapter, and the last one. She hasn't seen Denzel in eight years, and just kind of freaks out over it, especially when she factors in Tifa and Marlene. Oh, and, uh, there's a fair bit of angst from Denzel in this chapter; hope that doesn't bother anybody. Enjoy~!

* * *

**Confrontation**

At Denzel's plea for air and utterance of a name, Reno had to resist the urge to let his jaw drop to the ground.

"Say what? No way is this chick that same scrawny little ninja girl!"

The woman in question finally released the teen, rubbing her eyes and sparing the redhead only a passing glare. As the boy struggled to catch his breath, she babbled on, "I can't believe you're really here, right in front of me! I mean, I thought you were _dead_!"

He shot her a scowl with no real malice behind it, muttering, "Gee, thanks… Give me a little more credit than that."

Yuffie shook her head quickly and gave him another brief hug just for good measure—she needed to touch him, to confirm that he was really here, alive and in front of her, and not just a hallucination brought on by the heat.

"Sorry… but hey, Tifa and Marlene never stopped—"

She cut herself off before coming to a realization, glancing once more at the redheaded Turk as if to make sure. Then, she started glowering and balled her fists.

Denzel stared at her, confused, and started, "Yuffie? What's—"

_SMACK!_

And then he was on the ground, seeing stars and knowing without a doubt that he probably had a red handprint on his face. It would've been comical—hell, Reno certainly found it funny, if his hysterical laughter in the background was anything to judge—but it had come out of nowhere and hurt too damn much for the man to find any humor in the situation.

He looked up just in time to see another fist heading for his face and shot his own arm up, catching her. He glared angrily at her, eyes flashing. "What's wrong with you? Why did you do that?"

"Because!" she snarled, tearing her hand away and bonking him over the head, "…you jerk! Do you have _any idea_, any _at all_, what you've put Tifa and Marlene through with your little disappearing act? What you put us _all _through? And all this time, not only have you been safe and sound, but you've been with _them_!" she shouted, thrusting a finger out at Reno. "With Shinra! With the _Turks_! You…"

He could see that she was just barely shaking, and that alone sapped all his anger and will to fight, never mind the effect her _words_ had on him. "Yuffie…?"

"Traitor!" she screamed, before shouting at him in her native tongue.

And Denzel just sat there, feeling helpless as she railed on him, screaming things he couldn't understand—he could make an educated guess and say obscenities by the look on her face, though.

Finally, she stopped, collapsing on the ground in a tense sprawl and pointedly _not _looking him in the eye as she caught her breath.

Reno chose then to step in, expression dark. "I know that you and your little friends have never been fond of Shinra, but calling him a traitor's taking it a bit too far. We're not the enemy anymore, ya know."

She snorted before locking gazes with him. "You think we haven't figured out by now what went down that day? We know Jenova's back, and we know that she's using your _precious president_ as a host. Of course we'd assume that as his loyal lapdogs, you'd stick by him."

Being a professional, the redhead was able to control the anger at being referred to as a lapdog, not so much as a twitch coming across on his face. His words did hold a bite to them, though. "Newsflash, twerp, in a situation like this, where there's nothing we can do for Rufus, we look out for number one. The Turks are on their own now, you stupid brat."

He watched as a multitude of feelings cycled through the woman's eyes. Distrust and disbelief. Consideration and denial. And finally, a small spark of hope.

Reno could predict what she would ask Denzel before she so much as moved to turn to the other boy. "Is he… telling the truth?"

The sandy-haired individual rubbed his throbbing cheek, willing the pain away, and nodded. "Yeah. You think I'd still be with them if they were with the person responsible for this all?"

She smiled and went to heal the damage she'd caused. "You're right. And, um… I'm sorry that I slapped you. I was just…"

He shook his head. "It's okay. You were angry, hurt, and confused. Coming from you, I probably should've seen it coming."

She feigned annoyance, punching him softly in the arm. "I don't know what you're talking about, bud. I'm about as nice as it gets."

He smiled and rolled his eyes, was about to say something along the lines of, _It's good to have you back, Yuffie,_ but she once again beat him to the punch, clamping her hands on both shoulders.

He grew slightly nervous at the serious expression she now wore.

"You have to come back with me."

Both the men stared at her in shock, and Reno recovered quickly to say, "Why should he?"

Yuffie didn't even look at the redhead, focused completely on the boy in front of her.

"Denzel. You have to come back with me. To… to Tifa and Marlene."

* * *

Did she know? Had she somehow guessed that the two people in question were the two most important people in the world to him, that he had come this far _for _them? He was strong enough now. Plenty strong enough to be able to fight their battles for them, to keep them far from harm's way. To _protect _them. And hadn't that been his goal all along?

He had no reason not to go with her, to be reunited with the people he loved most.

Except…. Why was he still so hesitant—so _scared_?

Was it because his strength wasn't real, but just a benefit of the Mako racing through his veins? Did he feel that he hadn't yet achieved the true strength that he'd vied for?

Or maybe he felt bad about abandoning all the comrades he had here. Reno, Rude, Tseng, and Elena… they all counted on him. He was part of the team now. Without them, he never would've made it even this far, and to just leave them in the dust after he'd spent eight long years with them, earning their trust and friendship, seemed… wrong.

And Tifa and Marlene… he loved these two more than anything. He'd willingly die for either of them, if it came down to it. And he wanted to accept Yuffie's offer—more like order, but that was a small, unimportant detail—_so much_, had missed them so badly over the years.

But still most of all, he was terrified of seeing them again.

He knew he'd changed, wasn't the good little boy he'd once been. He'd become a cool, distant, biting man—if still somewhat insecure. What if they wouldn't accept what he'd become? Or what if they hated him due to becoming a Turk? Denzel knew well of their lingering resentment over the incident with Sector 7, and when he'd found out that Reno had been the instigator, he'd had a huge falling-out with the man, and almost left right then and there.

And here he was, working with said man _right now_. Would Marlene—would _Tifa_, who'd _been there_, and seen it happen, failed to stop it—accept this horrid betrayal and welcome him with open arms?

Of course they would.

The two of them had always been selfless and self-sacrificing, and he knew without a doubt that he could come back announcing what he was and who he worked with, and that they would swallow the pain and betrayal; that they would take him in.

And that made it all the worse, because he knew that they would be hurting, would hate what he'd become. And yet… they'd hide it, keep it to themselves, not letting him in on their pain.

And that it turn would hurt him more than any rejection ever would.

* * *

Yuffie waited. She waited for a good five, ten minutes while the boy thought.

She waited on pins and needles, wanting nothing more than to just grab the boy and drag him off towards home, towards Cosmo Canyon, damn whatever he thought of it.

Honestly, she couldn't understand what he was thinking so hard about. It seemed simple enough to her. All he had to do was say yes or no, and considering how much Tifa and Marlene mattered to the boy, the odds of him declining were slim.

And that's why she was so confused. She watched him, perplexed, as he retreated within himself and thought long and hard, and wanted so badly to just reach out and hug him again when she saw his expression turn pained.

He finally seemed to come out of his own little world just when she was about to call out to him, and the distant, yet somehow sorrowful look in his eyes made her stop short.

"…I'm sorry, Yuffie. But I can't."

Her blood ran cold, and she fought the automatic urge to scream at him again. Why would he… _how_ could he _do this?_ What was _wrong_ with him, making this choice?

She swallowed the pain and betrayal, standing and turning so the boy couldn't see the tears she was fighting—and dammit, she did hate herself just a little for becoming so emotional, and Reno was _right there_, seeing her like this…

She closed her eyes, blocked off the world. Carefully put her mask back on, her steeled expression that gave nothing away.

"You know…" she started, feeling quite proud of herself for keeping a steady tone, "…most of us just sort of assumed that you had died. We mourned, and moved on.

"But Tifa and Marlene didn't do that," she mumbled, "…they never for a second believed you had died. They couldn't. Instead, they remained hopeful, waiting day after day, year after year, for you to come back. To come _home_."

Denzel hung his head and clenched his fists. "Please stop, Yuffie…"

"Of course, they did mourn the initial loss," she went on, louder, overriding his plea, "but with every day you didn't come, their hopes fractured more and more, and they just continued to get hurt, where everyone else was healing."

She paused to catch her breath and turn back to him, a piercing look on her face that made him feel like dirt. "I just don't get it, Denzel. Why? _Why?_ Don't tell me that you don't care about them anymore, so why don't you want to go home to them, to make them happy?"

He averted his gaze and muttered, "I thought long and hard about the options, Yuffie. The choice I made was the best one. They'll eventually assume that I'm dead like everyone else did, and then they can start healing."

"Oh, so that's it!" she practically snarled, "You ran through all the best and worst case scenarios in your head to choose the best possible outcome! How _analytical _of you! Well, Mr. wise guy, did you think of the one where I go back home and tell them you're alive and don't want to be with them?"

"They'll be happy enough just knowing I'm alive! They'll accept that I'm not gonna be with them!" Denzel all but shouted, trying to drown out the woman's words.

"Think again! Maybe you haven't realized it, Denzel, but people are inherently selfish. Even the kindest, most selfless people like Tifa and Marlene aren't immune to this." She stopped to make sure she had his full attention before continuing, "Sad as it is, when you really love someone, it hurts more to know that they don't want to be with you, that they don't return the feelings, than it does for the person to just be gone."

* * *

He felt as if she'd physically electrocuted him; his body was numb, except for his tingling fingers and toes. He wanted desperately to shake his head, to shout, _No, that can't be true!_

…But.

But some small part of him agreed. Not ten minutes earlier, hadn't he been more terrified of being rejected than anything else? Over the years, whenever he thought of what had happened to the two women, he'd never really focused much on the possibility of them dying.

Tifa could never die, and she wouldn't let anything happen to Marlene, either.

On the rare occasion that he succeeded in thinking about them as dead, he just felt horrible, as if he'd failed.

But, he realized with dawning horror, he'd felt worse just _thinking_ about them maybe rejecting him.

* * *

He'd retreated within himself again, and the shell-shocked look on his face almost made her regret her harsh words. But she wasn't about to back down.

Leaving the practically comatose boy to himself, she turned to the redheaded Turk, who'd watched the whole confrontation quietly, never stepping in with his own input.

She was thankful for that, even though she knew it was probably only so he could pay better attention so as to give a fuller report to his leader later.

"Hey. Red." His only indication of noticing her was his eyes—glowing green, lighter than emerald, darker than neon, the kind of eyes that would keep you staring at them until you could peg _just what_ that elusive color was; dangerous eyes—flicking her way.

She had to resist the temptation to squirm under the gaze of those eyes—_Shinra, Turk, most likely a total womanizer, but most importantly, a killer,_ she reminded herself. "Take me to your leader."

* * *

AN—I know that, in comparison to the past few chapters, this one is dreadfully short. But, I struggled to get anything out on time, and considering all the important events coming up, I figured it best to cut this one off here, because continuing on would've made it too long to finish in time. Anyway, hopefully I handled it fairly well. I know that it was fairly uneventful (sorry!), and in fact mostly consisted of Denzel angsting. I hope it came across as realistic and not whining. Anyway, till next time!

**Also, there won't be a new chapter next month. **The whole reason I decided to do updates for this fic this way was to keep ahead, and I've been in kind of a funk lately, so I need an extra month to get ahead again. Reviews would motivate me. *hint, hint; wink, wink*


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